Four Cases of Supposed Multiple Personality Disorder: Evidence of Unjustified Diagnoses

Freeland, Alison; Manchanda, Rahul; Chiu, Sufen; Sharma, Verinder; Merskey, Harold

doi:10.1177/070674379303800403

Cited by 16 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…This occurred because there was a dramatic increase in reported cases of DID in 1970s and 1980s as compared with before 1970. Also, one report [17] found that some patients complaining of DID may have actually had factitious DID [15]. This last issue was raised by Merskey [18] in reference to the one case [8] of DID in the pain literature.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pain-determined Dissociation Episodes

et al. 2001

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Objectives. Dissociation disorders are a group of conditions characterized by a disruption of integrated function of consciousness, memory, or perception. The purpose of this report is to describe the impact of increased pain levels on the genesis of two types of dissociation disorders, dissociative fugue ( DF) and dissociative identity disorder ( DID), in patients with chronic pain ( PWCP). Design/Patients/Interventions/Outcome Measures. From November 1992 to July 2000, 2 DID and 4 DF patients were identified from 2,544 consecutive PWCP evaluated and/or treated at the University of Miami Comprehensive Pain and Rehabilitation Center. The salient features of these six dissociation PWCP are presented. All four DF PWCP completed a dissociation experience scale first at the time of identification of the dissociation disorder (with chronic pain) and one alleging their experiences with dissociation predevelopment of chronic pain. Results. Frequency percentage for dissociation for this population was 0.235%. For all four of the DF PWCP, dissociation episodes began after the onset of chronic pain. All six (100%) PWCP described or associated their episodes of dissociation to times when their pain would increase. Mean dissociation scale scores for the four DF PWCP were 1.4 ± 1.11 pre‐chronic pain and 20.53 ± 16.82 at time of identification of the dissociative disorder (with chronic pain). Conclusions. The frequency percentage for dissociation within PWCP is small compared with psychiatric populations. There may be an etiological association between the development of dissociation episodes and the development of chronic pain and/or increases in chronic pain.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pain-determined Dissociation Episodes

et al. 2001

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“…Moreover, suicide attempts may occur in the weeks following the diagnosis: Fetkewicz and associates showed that, after the diagnosis had been made, MPD-diagnosed patients attempted suicide more frequently than age-and sex-matched patients suffering from major depressive disorder (55). In another study, 4 of 5 MPD patients improved dramatically when they were rediagnosed and treated in more conventional ways (56).…”

Section: Reliability Of the Did Diagnosis: Daubert Concernsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Persistence of Folly: Critical Examination of Dissociative Identity Disorder. Part II. The Defence and Decline of Multiple Personality or Dissociative Identity Disorder

Piper

Merskey

2004

Can J Psychiatry

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In this second part of our review, we continue to explore the illogical nature of the arguments offered to support the concept of dissociative identity disorder (DID). We also examine the harm done to patients by DID proponents' diagnostic and treatment methods. It is shown that these practices reify the alters and thereby iatrogenically encourage patients to behave as if they have multiple selves. We next examine the factors that make impossible a reliable diagnosis of DID--for example, the unsatisfactory, vague, and elastic definition of "alter personality." Because the diagnosis is unreliable, we believe that US and Canadian courts cannot responsibly accept testimony in favour of DID. Finally, we conclude with a guess about the condition's status over the next 10 years.

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