factitious disorder

noun

Medical Definition of factitious disorder

: a psychological disorder (such as Munchausen syndrome) in which someone intentionally produces or feigns symptoms of a disease or injury to convince others that medical treatment is needed Unlike the malingerer, who consciously induces symptoms to obtain something of value, the patient with a factitious disorder consciously produces symptoms for unconscious reasons, without identifiable gain.— Paul R. Linde, Journal of the American Medical Association, 1 Sept. 1993 also : a similar condition (such as Munchausen syndrome by proxy) in which a caregiver (such as a parent) intentionally produces symptoms of disease or injury in the person being cared for