Which of the following best describes thought withdrawal delusions?

A. Worry about health despite no symptoms. This describes illness anxiety disorder (formerly hypochondriasis), where individuals have an excessive fear of having a serious illness despite minimal or no physical symptoms. Unlike factitious disorder, these individuals are not fabricating symptoms but are genuinely convinced they are sick.

B. Normal voluntary and sensory dysfunction. This does not describe any recognized psychiatric disorder. However, conversion disorder (functional neurological symptom disorder) involves involuntary neurological symptoms (e.g., paralysis, blindness) without a medical cause, whereas factitious disorder involves intentional symptom fabrication.

C. Worry is out of proportion to the symptoms. This is characteristic of somatic symptom disorder (SSD), where individuals have excessive concern and distress over real but often minor physical symptoms. Unlike factitious disorder, their symptoms are not deliberately produced or exaggerated for attention.

D. Deliberate exaggeration and fabricated symptoms. Factitious disorder (formerly Munchausen syndrome) involves intentionally faking, exaggerating, or inducing medical symptoms to assume the "sick role". Unlike malingering (which is done for external rewards like financial gain), factitious disorder is driven by an internal psychological need for medical attention.

A. Overreaction of a medical symptom. While individuals with illness anxiety disorder (IAD) may misinterpret normal bodily sensations as signs of serious illness, the key feature is excessive health-related worry in the absence of significant symptoms, rather than just overreacting to existing symptoms.

B. Faked symptoms. Feigning symptoms is characteristic of factitious disorder (formerly Munchausen syndrome) or malingering, where individuals intentionally produce or exaggerate symptoms for attention or external gain. In IAD, the concern is genuine but unfounded, rather than intentionally fabricated.

C. Abnormal voluntary motor or sensory dysfunction. This describes conversion disorder (functional neurological symptom disorder), where individuals experience neurological symptoms (e.g., paralysis, blindness, or seizures) without a medical explanation, typically triggered by psychological stress.

D. Worry about health despite no symptoms. Illness anxiety disorder (IAD) is marked by persistent, excessive fear of having a serious illness, despite minimal or no symptoms and repeated medical reassurance. Patients often engage in excessive health-related behaviors (e.g., frequent doctor visits, checking their body) or avoid medical care altogether due to fear of diagnosis.