Patological jealousy among alcoholics - a case report

Background

Pathological jealousy among alcoholics more commonly affected men than women. The jealousy type of delusional disorder is rare. The onset is often sudden. A person with a jealous delusion can inflict significant verbal and physical abuse on the spouse and can even kill her or him. In 1891, Richard Freiherr von Krafft-Ebing emphasized the frequent association between alcoholism and jealous delusion.

Materials and methods

We exposed the 52-male patient who was treated in the Institute of Addictions, Department of Alcoholism, Belgrade in period of May to July 2007, and verification the next diagnosis according the ICD -X:Alcohol Dependency, Delusional Disorders.We used the medical history of illness, data collected by clinical examinations, psychiatry interviews administered both to patient and the spouse and reviewed actual bibliographical and related articles.

Results

The exposed patient was diagnosed by ICD-X like alcohol dependency 10 years ago. He is heavy drinker and alcohol consumption is very frequent.The initial period of alcohol abuse was in early adulthood. After he married there were a lot of couple and family problems, also problems with kids.The symptoms of pathological jealousy began 3 years ago, suddenly and very prompt, with no real evidence.

Conclusions

Alcoholism has a main role to development of pathological jealousy and there are strong associations between this condition and dependence on alcohol.