Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Mad Scientist: The Unique Case of a Published Delusion

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Science and Engineering Ethics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

In 1951, entomologist Jay Traver published in the Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington her personal experiences with a mite infestation of her scalp that resisted all treatment and was undetectable to anyone other than herself. Traver is recognized as having suffered from Delusory Parasitosis: her paper shows her to be a textbook case of the condition. The Traver paper is unique in the scientific literature in that its conclusions may be based on data that was unconsciously fabricated by the author’s mind. The paper may merit retraction on the grounds of error or even scientific misconduct “by reason of insanity,” but such a retraction raises the issue of discrimination against the mentally ill. This article asks what responsibilities journals have when faced with delusions disguised as science, what right editors have to question the sanity of an author, and what should be done about the Traver paper itself. By placing higher emphasis on article content than author identity, scientific integrity is maintained and a balance is struck between avoiding discrimination against the mentally ill and not preventing patients from seeking needed treatment.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. Another commonly cited paper that claims springtails (Collembola) infest people (Altschuler et al. 2004) has also been thoroughly and repeatedly discredited (Christiansen and Bernard 2008). It was published with the aid of an illegally manipulated photograph, a clear case of scientific misconduct that is being cited as grounds for retraction of the article and an investigation into one of the authors (“Call for Retraction: ‘Collembolla Found in Scrapings from Individuals Diagnosed with Delusory Parasitosis,’” Shelomi, submitted to Entomologica Americana).

References

  • Altschuler, D. Z., Crutcher, M., Dulceanu, N., Cervantes, B. A., Terinte, C., & Sorkin, L. N. (2004). Collembolla (Springtails) (Arthropoda: Hexapoda: Entognatha) found in scrapings from individuals diagnosed with delusory parasitosis. Journal of New York Entomology Society, 112(1), 87–95.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Aw, D., Thong, J., & Chan, H. (2004). Delusional parasitosis: case series of 8 patients and review of the literature. Annals, Academy of Medicine, Singapore, 33, 89–94.

    Google Scholar 

  • Babe, K. S. (1995). House dust mite (Dermatophagoides farinae and Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus) prevalence in the rooms and hallways of a tertiary care hospital. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, 95(4), 801–805.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bourgeois, M. L., Duhamel, P., & Verdoux, H. (1992). Delusional parasitosis: Folie a deux and attempted murder of a family doctor. British Journal of Psychiatry, 161, 709–711.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Budd, J. M., Sievert, M., & Schultz, T. R. (1998). Phenomena of retraction: Reasons for retraction and citations to the publications. Journal of the American Medical Association, 280(3), 296–297.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Budd, J. M., Sievert, M., Schultz, T. R., & Scoville, C. (1999). Effects of article retraction on citation and practice in medicine. Bulletin of the Medical Library Association, 87(4), 437–443.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bulletin for the Society of Vector Ecology. (1993). Proceedings of the 23rd SOVE annual conference. Symposium: Delusions of parasitosis, sparks, Nevada.

  • Christiansen, K. A., & Bernard, E. C. (2008). Critique of the article “Collembolla (Springtails) (Arthropoda: Hexapoda: Entognatha) found in scrapings from individuals diagnosed with delusory parasitosis.” Entomological News, 119(5), 537–540.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Editors of the Lancet. (2010). Retraction—Ileal-lymphoid-nodular hyperplasia, non-specific colitis, and pervasive developmental disorder in children. The Lancet, 375(9713), 445.

    Google Scholar 

  • Edlich, R. F., Cross, C. L., Wack, C. A., & Long, W. B. III, (2009). Delusions of parasitosis. American Journal of Emergency Medicine, 27(8), 997–999.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ekbom, K. A. (1938). Der präsenile dermatozoenwahns. Acta Psychiatrica et Neurologica Scandinavica, 13, 227–259.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goodwin, F. K., & Jamison, K. R. (1990). Manic-depressive illness: Oxford University Press.

  • Hinkle, N. C. (2000). Delusory parasitosis. American Entomologist, 46(1), 17–25.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hinkle, N. C. (2010). Ekbom syndrome: The challenge of “invisible bug” infestation. Annual Review of Entomology, 55, 77–94.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hinkle, N. C. (2011). Ekbom syndrome: A delusional condition of “bugs in the skin.” Current psychiatry reports, 13(3), 178–186.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lee, C. S. (2008). Delusions of parasitosis. Dermatologic Therapy, 21, 2–7.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lepping, P., Russell, I., & Freudenmann, R. W. (2007). Antipsychotic treatment of primary delusional parasitosis: Systematic review. British Journal of Psychiatry, 191, 198–205.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lyell, A. (1983). Delusions of parasitosis. British Journal of Dermatology, 108, 485–499.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lynch, P. J. (1993). Delusions of parasitosis. Seminars in Dermatology, 12(1), 39–45.

    Google Scholar 

  • Meehan, W. J., Badreshia, S., & Mackley, C. L. (2006). Successful treatment of delusions of parasitosis with olanzapine. Archives of Dermatology, 142(3), 352–355.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Miller, J., & Miller, A. (1996). 962 Ten minutes in a clothes dryer kills all mites in blankets. The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, 97(1), 423.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Montgomerie, B., & Birkhead, T. (2005). A beginner’s guide to scientific misconduct. International Society for Behavioral Ecological Newsletter, 17(1), 16–24.

    Google Scholar 

  • Poorbaugh, J. (1993). Cryptic arthropod infestations: Separating fact from fiction. Bulletin of the Society for Vector Ecology, 18(1), 3–5.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reilly, T. M., Jopling, W. H., & Beard, A. W. (1978). Successful treatment with pimozide of delusional parasitosis. British Journal of Dermatology, 98, 457–459.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shelomi, M. (2012). Call for retraction: ‘Collembolla found in scrapings from individuals diagnosed with delusory parasitosis.’ Entomologica Americana (submitted).

  • Sokal, A. (1996). A physicist experiments with cultural studies. Lingua Franca, 6(4), 62–64.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sox, H. C., & Rennie, D. (2006). Research misconduct, retraction, and cleansing the medical literature: Lessons from the Poehlman case. Annals of Internal Medicine, 144, E7–E11.

    Google Scholar 

  • Trabert, W. (1999). Shared psychotic disorder in delusional parasitosis. Psychopathology, 32(1), 30–34.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Traver, J. (1951). Unusual scalp dermatitis in humans caused by the mite, dermatophagoides (Acarina, epidermoptidae). Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Washington, 53(1), 1–25.

    Google Scholar 

  • Waddell, C. (1998). Creativity and mental illness: Is there a link? Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 43(2), 166–172.

    Google Scholar 

  • Waldron, W. G. (1962). The role of the entomologist in delusory parasitosis (entomophobia). Bulletin of the ESA, 8(2), 81–83.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, J. W., & Miller, H. E. (1946). Delusion of parasitosis (acarophobia). Archives of Dermatology, 54(1), 39.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The author would like to thank Lynn Kimsey and Steve Heydon of the Bohart Museum of Entomology, University of California, Davis.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Entomology, University of California, Davis, c/o Bohart Museum of Entomology, 1 Shields Ave, Davis, CA, 95616, USA

    Matan Shelomi

Authors
  1. Matan Shelomi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Matan Shelomi.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Shelomi, M. Mad Scientist: The Unique Case of a Published Delusion. Sci Eng Ethics 19, 381–388 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11948-011-9339-2

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11948-011-9339-2

Keywords

Search

Navigation