Pseudocyesis is a rare condition in which a non-pregnant patient believes to bear a child due to psychological or somatic manifestations,or even both.Usually,there is a misinterpretation of body changes associated with emotional aspect of pregnancy or thought disorders(or chronic mental disorders),what makes pseudopregnancy a complex disorder to deal with,starting with its confusing classification in the DSM IV-TR.

To document epidemiologic aspects of false pregnancies in a Brazilian population, reporting the most prevalent psychiatric diagnosis and demographic features associated, and compare it to the literature.

Retrospective study of 20 patients diagnosed with pseudocyesis over a ten-year period in 3 hospitals of a Brazilian central region.Compare data with studies on sociodemographic, clinic, biological and evolutive correlates of pseudocyesis in PubMed.

The mean age was 33, with the majority between 20–44. The symptomology matches the literature.Of the women, 15 (83%) were in the reproductive age, but 8 (44%) of them were infertil. Two male patients with pseudocyesis had a typical psychiatric presentation. The psychiatric diagnosis were: 9(45%) affective disorders, 9(45%) psychotic disorders, 1 (2,5%) Huntington‘s Disease and 1 (2,5%) epilepsy.

In terms of Brazil, this is an unique study of the subject, with the greatest data collected so far. We found many similarities,including age, socioeconomic status, symptoms, underlying disorders and history. And we notted the frequency of psychiatric disorders in those patients (specially Bipolar Disorder and Schizophrenia)