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A variant of Capgras syndrome with delusional conviction of inanimate doubles in a patient with grandmal epilepsy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 June 2014

Alireza Ghaffari Nejad  and
Khatereh Toofani
Alireza Ghaffari Nejad*
Affiliation:
Beheshti Hospital, Kerman, Iran
Khatereh Toofani
Affiliation:
Beheshti Hospital, Kerman, Iran
*
Alireza Ghaffari Nejad, MD, Department of Psychiatry, Beheshti Psychiatric Hospital, Kerman, Iran. Tel: +98 341 2117884; Fax: +98 341 2110856; E-mail: argnejad@yahoo.com
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Abstract

Background:

Capgras syndrome is the most common type of delusional misidentification syndromes. In this phenomenon, the patient believes the delusional conviction that a familiar person has been replaced by imposters. Capgras syndrome was thought to occur in psychotic and organic contexts. It has some rare variants. In one of these rare variants, the patient has the delusion of inanimate doubles. There are reports which regard the relationship between Capgras syndrome and epilepsy as a contributing factor. We present a case of grandmal epilepsy with psychotic features including delusion of inanimate doubles.

Methods:

A single case is reported.

Case history:

A 55-year-old woman with long-time history of grandmal epilepsy developed psychosis 3 months prior to her psychiatric referral. She believed that her sons replaced her possessions and furniture continuously. There was no history of previous psychiatric illness, and also there was no evidence of any other organic disorder.

Conclusion:

Previous reports showed Capgras phenomenon as a clinical presentation in epileptic patients. We show that the delusion of doubles of inanimate objects as a variant of Capgras syndrome could also be a clinical presentation in epileptic patients.

Keywords

Capgras syndromegrandmal epilepsyinanimate object
Type
Case Report
Information
Acta Neuropsychiatrica , Volume 18 , Issue 1 , February 2006 , pp. 52 - 54
Copyright
Copyright © 2006 Blackwell Munksgaard

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