“…The more severe Munchausen's syndrome is thought even less common but with a greater propensity for affecting men (Ireland et al, 1967), although Bhugra (1988) suggests there is nothing to confirm a difference in the gender ratio. People with Munchausen's syndrome have been described as typically being 'wandering sociopathic males' (Ireland et al, 1967;Carney, 1980), less stable and more aggressive individuals; most factitious disorders are seen in females, the 'non-wanderers' with less psychopathic traits (Carney, 1980). It has been noted that Munchausen's syndrome is likely to appear to be more common than other factitious disorders because of relative overreporting in the literature, which may be an artefact of the attitudes it induces in doctors and psychiatrists (Bursten, 1965), reducing the referral and reporting rate (Blackwell, 1968).…”