In 1987, Rosenberg defined Munchausen syndrome by proxy (MSP) as ‘Illness in a child which is simulated (faked) and/or produced by a parent or someone who is in loco parentis’ and a ‘Denial of knowledge by the perpetrator as to the aetiology of the child’s illness [at least before the deception is discovered]’. In the ICD-10 (though not itself explicitly cited in the classification) MSP may be placed under the category of ‘factitious disorders’ F68.1 (Rosenburg, 1987; WHO, 1983).
