Question

All the following are true regarding pseudocyesis, EXCEPT:

• A. The patients usually have an intense desire to have children
• B. Change in the breast may be present
• C. There may be considerable increase in the size of the abdomen
• D. The labour pain invariably continues to persist even if she is told that she is not pregnant

Hint:

The phantom labour pains usually stop once she is convinced she is not pregnant.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Step 1: Pseudocyesis (phantom or false pregnancy) is a condition in which a non-pregnant woman develops signs and symptoms of pregnancy. It is typically seen in women nearing menopause or in young women who intensely desire children, and most have an underlying psychic or hormonal disturbance. So option a is true.

Step 2: Real pregnancy-like changes can appear, including breast changes and apparent abdominal enlargement (the abdomen distends mainly due to deposition of fat). So options b and c are true.

Step 3: The symptoms are psychologically driven, so the perceived labour pains tend to stop abruptly once the woman is convincingly told she is not pregnant. The claim that labour pain invariably persists even after she is told she is not pregnant is therefore false.

Step 4: Since the question asks for the EXCEPT (the false statement), option d is the answer.