The Turkish Journal of Pediatrics
2012 , Vol 54 , Num 4
Treatment of a severe conversion disorder in a 10-year-old boy: a case study and overview
1Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and 2Pediatric Neurology Unit, Department of Pediatrics, Hacettepe
University Faculty of Medicine, Ankara, Turkey. E-mail: dilsad_ozdemir@yahoo.com
Conversion disorder (CD) in children remains a major challenge both in
pediatric and mental health clinics and is still a prevalent psychiatric disorder
in developing countries. The authors describe a 10-year-old boy with the
complaints of inability to walk, speak or eat, excessive drooling, urinary and
fecal incontinence, disturbance from light and sound, and expression of needs
only by eye movements. The patient diagnosed with CD was followed by the
Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry with play therapy, individual
psychotherapy and family therapy. At the end of three months, the patient
was discharged. This is one of the most challenging cases of CD in children.
The most important aim of the treatment is to understand the need for
conversion symptoms and to constitute a healthy psychological environment
for the child rather than to remove the physical symptoms.
Keywords :
conversion disorder, child, treatment.