Ganser Syndrome: Its Most Frequent Symptoms And Causes
In the medical and psychological literature we find mention of Ganser syndrome, a very rare mental disorder characterized by symptoms such as approximate answers to simple questions, complex hallucinations and conversion phenomena.
In this article we will analyze The causes and symptoms of Ganser syndrome
Ganser syndrome is a very rare clinical condition that was described for the first time in 1898. The name given to this phenomenon comes from its discoverer: the German psychiatrist Sigbert Ganser. We also find the terms “hysterical pseudodementia”, “pseudodementia syndrome” and “prison psychosis”
This last name refers to the fact that Ganser syndrome has been identified with a higher frequency than usual in prison populations. In most of these cases, the symptoms are most likely an attempt to receive better treatment from prison staff or other inmates.
The most characteristic symptom of Ganser syndrome is pararesponses or approximate answers; These are flawed answers but relatively close to the truth that are given to simple questions. The rest of the signs of this condition include conversion phenomena, echophenomena and apparent alterations of consciousness, among others.
The few prevalence studies available indicate that Ganser syndrome appears more common in men than in women, in a ratio of 3:1. The average age of diagnosis would be slightly above 30 years, although it sometimes occurs in children. However, very little is known about this phenomenon due to its extreme rarity.
Ganser syndrome has traditionally been classified in the category of factitious disorders, which are characterized by feigning an illness to achieve a “patient role” The other typical phenomenon of this class is Münchausen syndrome, in which the person feigns illnesses or psychological traumas in order to obtain social reinforcement.
In this sense, factitious disorders should be distinguished from simulation. In the vocabulary of clinical psychology and other related disciplines, the term “simulation” is used to refer to cases in which an illness or mental disorder is feigned with an objective other than obtaining the sick role, such as be the economic benefit.
It is extended Understanding Ganser Syndrome as a Dissociative Disorder, so it would be more similar to phenomena such as depersonalization, derealization and dissociative amnesia. Dissociative experiences consist of separations of cognitive processes (including consciousness) that arise in reaction to stress.
However, currently the most accepted explanation for the causes of Ganser syndrome defines it as a psychotic disorder In this sense, it is worth highlighting the association of this clinical condition with schizophrenia, intoxication by alcohol and other psychoactive substances, and severe depressive disorders.
Main symptoms and signs
Pararesponses, conversion symptoms, alterations of consciousness and pseudohallucinations are the four most defining features of Ganser syndrome. It is also important to highlight the ecophenomena, which occur with some frequency in this clinical context, and the high levels of stress and anxiety that are detected in these people.
1. Approximate answers or pararesponses
The pararesponses consist of answers relatively close to reality that arise from questions that are easy to answer. In many cases, Ganser syndrome is conceptualized around this very peculiar manifestation; In fact, the DSM-IV manual places approximate responses at the core of the criteria for diagnosing the condition.
Conversion consists of the presence of physical symptoms, such as pain or sensory and motor deficits, in the absence of an organic cause identifiable. Conversion disorder is currently questioned; The DSM-5 includes it in the category “somatic symptom disorders,” which also includes factitious disorder, among others.
3. Alteration of the level of consciousness
The two symptoms related to the level of alertness, and therefore consciousness, that appear most commonly in Ganser syndrome are the feeling of mental confusion and loss of personal identity In general, people with this clinical condition may have difficulties reacting to environmental stimuli and processing them.
4. Complex hallucinations
People with Ganser syndrome frequently report very elaborate hallucinations in any of the sensory modalities. Given that in psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia hallucinations are usually auditory and simple, these types of stories may serve as a clue in the diagnosis of this rare syndrome
5. Ecophenomena
Ecophenomena or ecosymptoms are imitation or repetition behaviors that occur without the subject’s voluntary control. The environmental stimuli that are reproduced can be actions (echopraxia), verbalizations (echolalia), or facial expressions (ecomemia), among others.
