Question

A man feels that his nose is too long, though his friends feel otherwise. He has consulted three plastic surgeons, but all of them have refused to treat him. What condition does he suffer from?

• A. Hypochondriasis
• B. Somatisation
• C. Munchausen syndrome
• D. Delusional disorder

Hint:

A fixed false belief about the body that does not change even after repeated expert reassurance points to a delusion, not simple health anxiety.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
This question checks if you can tell apart four psychiatric labels that all involve a person believing something is wrong with their body or health, when it is not.

Step 2: Key Approach:
Ask two questions for each option: is the worry about disease or about appearance, and can the person be talked out of the belief with real evidence.

Step 3: Detailed Explanation:
Hypochondriasis: worry is about having a disease, driven by misreading normal bodily signs; this does not match, since the man is not scared of an illness.
Somatisation: many physical complaints in different organ systems without a medical cause; this man has one single fixed idea, not scattered complaints, so it does not match.
Munchausen syndrome: the person deliberately produces or lies about symptoms for attention; here the man is not lying, he sincerely believes his nose is abnormal.
Delusional disorder, somatic subtype: a single, fixed, false idea about the body that survives strong, repeated contrary evidence. Three separate surgeons refusing to operate is exactly that kind of contrary evidence, and his belief still does not change.
This pattern of a body image belief so rigid that it beats consistent expert opinion is what separates it from ordinary appearance dissatisfaction and places it at the level of a delusion.

Step 4: Final Answer:
Because the false belief about his nose stays fixed despite being turned down by three plastic surgeons, the diagnosis is delusional disorder.