A 55-year-old man insists that his wife of 30 years has been replaced by an identical-looking impostor. He recognises her appearance as familiar but believes she is a stranger. His memory and cognition are otherwise intact on testing. This specific delusional misidentification is called:
- A Fregoli delusion
- B Capgras delusion ✓
- C Intermetamorphosis
- D Delusion of doubles (sosie)
Correct answer: B. Capgras delusion
Explanation
Capgras delusion is the belief that a familiar person, usually a close relative, has been replaced by an identical impostor. It reflects a disconnection between facial recognition and the autonomic emotional response to that face. Fregoli delusion is the opposite error, where strangers are believed to be familiar people in disguise. Intermetamorphosis involves identity swap between acquaintances, and sosie describes a person believed to be a double without replacement of the original.
Reference: Kaplan and Sadock's Synopsis of Psychiatry, 12th ed.
High-yield for: NEET PGINI-CETNExTFMGEUSMLEPLABMRCP
Written and medically reviewed by the StethoPrep medical team.