The term "Munchausen by Internet" was first used in an article published in the "Southern Medical Journal" written by Marc Feldman in 2000. Feldman, a clinical professor of psychiatry at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, gave a name to the phenomenon in 2000, but he co-authored an article on the topic two years earlier in the "Western Journal of Medicine", using the description "virtual factitious disorder". Factitious disorders are described in the "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: DSM-IV-TR" (DSM) as psychological disorders involving the production of non-existent physical or psychological ailments to earn sympathy. These illnesses are feigned not for monetary gain or to avoid inconvenient situations, but to attract compassion or to control others. Chronic manifestation of factitious disorder is often called Munchausen syndrome, after a book about the exaggerated accounts of the adventures of Baron Munchausen, a German cavalry officer in the Russian Army, that was written by Rudolf Erich Raspe. When the symptoms of another person, such as a child or an elderly parent, are purposely induced by the caregiver, it is called factitious disorder imposed on another, or Munchausen syndrome by proxy.

Feldman noted that the advent of online support groups, combined with access to vast stores of medical information, enabled individuals seeking to gain sympathy by relating a series of harrowing medical or psychological problems that defy comprehension to misuse the groups. Communication forums specializing in medical or psychological recovery were established to give lay users support in navigating often confusing and frustrating medical processes and bureaucracy. Communities often formed on those forums, with the goal of sharing information to help other members. Medical websites also became common, giving lay users access to literature in a way that was accessible to those without specific medical training. As Internet communication grew in popularity, users began to forgo the doctors and hospitals often consulted for medical advice. Frequenting virtual communities that have experience with a medical problem, Feldman notes, is easier than going through the physical pain or illness that would be necessary before visiting a doctor to get the attention sought. By pretending to be gravely ill, Internet users can gain sympathy from a group whose sole reason for existence is support. Health care professionals, with their limited time, greater medical knowledge, and tendency to be more skeptical in their diagnoses, may be less likely to provide that support.

Munchausen by Internet is a pattern of behavior akin to Munchausen syndrome (renamed factitious disorder imposed on self), a psychiatric disorder, wherein those affected feign disease, illness, or psychological trauma to draw attention, sympathy, or reassurance to themselves. In Munchausen by internet, users seek attention by feigning illnesses in online venues such as chat rooms, message boards, and Internet Relay Chat (IRC). It has been described in medical literature as a manifestation of factitious disorder imposed on self, or if claiming illness of a child or other family member, factitious disorder imposed on another. Reports of users who deceive Internet forum participants by portraying themselves as gravely ill or as victims of violence first appeared in the 1990s due to the relative newness of Internet communications. The pattern was identified in 1998 by psychiatrist Marc Feldman, who created the term "Münchausen by Internet" in 2000. It is not included in the fifth revision of the "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders" (DSM-5).

The development of factitious disorders in online venues is made easier by the availability of medical literature on the Internet, the anonymous and malleable nature of online identities, and the existence of communication forums established for the sole purpose of giving support to members facing significant health or psychological problems. Several high-profile cases have demonstrated behavior patterns which are common among those who pose as gravely ill or as victims of violence, or whose deaths are announced to online forums. The virtual communities that were created to give support, as well as general non-medical communities, often express genuine sympathy and grief for the purported victims. When fabrications are suspected or confirmed, the ensuing discussion can create schisms in online communities, destroying some and altering the trusting nature of individual members in others.

MSbP is rare. A recent systematic study in Italy found that in a series of over 700 patients admitted to a pediatric ward, 4 cases met the diagnostic criteria for MSbP (0.53%). In this study, stringent diagnostic criteria were used, which required at least one test outcome or event that could not possibly have occurred without deliberate intervention by the MSbP person.

One study showed that in 93 percent of MSbP cases, the abuser is the mother or another female guardian or caregiver. This may be attributed to the prevalent socialization pattern that places females in the primary care-taking role. Of course, it could also be a gender trait rooted in genetics, as it is easy to see how females who seek attention as victims could gain an evolutionary advantage, while men seeking the same would be unfavoured for physical protection and mating. A psychodynamic model of this kind of maternal abuse exists.

MSbP may be more prevalent in the parents of those with a learning difficulty or mental incapacity, and as such the apparent patient could, in fact, be an adult.

Fathers and other male caregivers have been the perpetrators in only 7% of the cases studied. When they are not actively involved in the abuse, the fathers or male guardians of MSbP victims are often described as being distant, emotionally disengaged, and powerless. These men play a passive role in MSbP by being frequently absent from the home and rarely visiting the hospitalized child. Usually, they vehemently deny the possibility of abuse, even in the face of overwhelming evidence or their child's pleas for help.

Overall, male and female children are equally likely to be the victim of MSbP. In the few cases where the father is the perpetrator, however, the victim is three times more likely to be male.

Munchausen syndrome by proxy is a controversial term. In the World Health Organization's International Statistical Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision (ICD-10), the official diagnosis is factitious disorder (301.51 in ICD-9, F68.12 in ICD-10). Within the United States, factitious disorder imposed on another (FDIA or FDIoA) was officially recognized as a disorder in 2013, while in the United Kingdom, it is known as fabricated or induced illness by carers (FII).

In DSM-5, the diagnostic manual published by the American Psychiatric Association in 2013, this disorder is listed under "301.51 Factitious disorder". This, in turn, encompasses two types:

- "Factitious disorder imposed on self" – (formerly Munchausen syndrome).

- "Factitious disorder imposed on another" – (formerly Munchausen syndrome by proxy); diagnosis assigned to the perpetrator; the victim may be assigned an abuse diagnosis (e.g. child abuse).

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR) classifies klismaphilia under the diagnosis of "Paraphilias, Not Otherwise Specified". The diagnostic code is 302.9. Proactive treatment for klismaphilics is not generally recommended, due to the lack of any significant desire to be "cured". Health treatment for klismaphilia thus is typically only focused on ensuring the techniques employed and chemicals used are not harmful to the practitioner. Caution should always be maintained on the part of the practitioners experimenting with new techniques and concoctions; in certain cases cramps produced by the chemicals used have led to hospitalizations, in other circumstances the effects can even be life-threatening.

Diagnosing factitious disorder imposed on self requires a clinical assessment. Clinicians should be aware that those presenting with symptoms (or persons reporting for that person) may malinger, and caution should be taken to ensure there is evidence for a diagnosis. Lab tests may be required, including complete blood count (CBC), urine toxicology, drug levels from blood, cultures, coagulation tests, assays for thyroid function, or DNA typing. In some cases CT scan, magnetic resonance imaging, psychological testing, electroencephalography, or electrocardiography may also be employed. A summary of more common and reported cases of factitious disorder (Munchausen syndrome), and the laboratory tests used to differentiate these from authentic disease is provided below:

There are several symptoms that together point to factitious disorder, including frequent hospitalizations, knowledge of several illnesses, frequently requesting medication such as pain killers, openness to extensive surgery, few or no visitors during hospitalizations, and exaggerated or fabricated stories about several medical problems. Factitious disorder should not be confused with hypochondria, as people with factitious disorder syndrome do not really believe they are sick; they only want to be sick, and thus fabricate the symptoms of an illness. It is also not the same as pretending to be sick for personal benefit such as being excused from work or school.

People may fake their symptoms in multiple ways. Other than making up past medical histories and faking illnesses, people might inflict harm on themselves by consuming laxatives or other substances, self-inflicting injury to induce bleeding, and altering laboratory samples.” Many of these conditions do not have clearly observable or diagnostic symptoms and sometimes the syndrome will go undetected because patients will fabricate identities when visiting the hospital several times. Factitious disorder has several complications, as these people will go to great lengths to fake their illness. Severe health problems, serious injuries, loss of limbs or organs, and even death are possible complications.

Apotemnophia / Body Integrity Disorder (BIID) is a is a rare, infrequently studied and highly secretive condition in which there is a mismatch between the mental body image and the physical body. Apotemnomphilia is characterized by an intense desire for amputation of a limb. Currently BIID is not included in the International Statistical Classification of Diseases 11 or the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders IV. It is often not known to surgeons, neurologists and psychiatrists. BIID individuals typically avoid healthcare and often act out their desires by pretending they are disabled or perform actual self-amputation.

A 2012 study concluded, based on interviews with 54 individuals, that the main rationale for their desire for body modification (amputation) was to feel complete or to feel satisfied inside. Based on the results of the survey, researchers concluded that psychotherapy was often supportive, but did not help diminishing BIID symptoms. Individuals reported that antidepressants were helpful in reducing depressive symptoms related to BIID, but that antipsychotics were not. Actual amputation of the limb was effective in all 7 cases who had surgical treatment.

Because there is uncertainty in treating suspected factitious disorder imposed on self, some advocate that health care providers first explicitly rule out the possibility that the person has another early-stage disease. Then they may take a careful history and seek medical records to look for early deprivation, childhood abuse, or mental illness. If a person is at risk to themself, psychiatric hospitalization may be initiated.

Healthcare providers may consider working with mental health specialists to help treat the underlying mood or disorder as well as to avoid countertransference. Therapeutic and medical treatment may center on the underlying psychiatric disorder: a mood disorder, an anxiety disorder, or borderline personality disorder. The patient's prognosis depends upon the category under which the underlying disorder falls; depression and anxiety, for example, generally respond well to medication and/or cognitive behavioral therapy, whereas borderline personality disorder, like all personality disorders, is presumed to be pervasive and more stable over time, and thus offers a worse prognosis.

People affected may have multiple scars on their abdomen due to repeated "emergency" operations.

Some medical practitioners are open to a patient's personal research, as this can open lines of communication between doctors and patients, and prove valuable in eliciting more complete or pertinent information from the patient about their present condition.

Other doctors express concern about patients who self-diagnose on the basis of information obtained from the Internet when the patient demonstrates an incomplete or distorted understanding of other diagnostic possibilities and medical likelihoods. A patient who exaggerates one set of symptoms in support of their self-diagnosis while minimizing or suppressing contrary symptoms can impair rather than enhance a doctor's ability to reach a correct diagnosis.

Video game addiction (VGA) is a hypothetical behavioral addiction characterized by excessive or compulsive use of computer games or video games, which interferes with a person's everyday life. Video game addiction may present itself as compulsive gaming, social isolation, mood swings, diminished imagination, and hyper-focus on in-game achievements, to the exclusion of other events in life.

In May 2013, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) proposed criteria for video game addiction in the 5th edition of the "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders", concluding that there was insufficient evidence to include it as an official mental disorder. However, proposed criteria for "Internet Gaming Disorder" were included in a section called "Conditions for Further Study".

While Internet gaming disorder is proposed as a disorder, it is still discussed how much this disorder is caused by the gaming activity itself, or whether it is to some extent an effect of other disorders. Contradictions in research examining video game addictiveness may reflect more general inconsistencies in video game research. For example, while some research has linked violent video games with increased aggressive behavior other research has failed to find evidence for such links.

Otherkin largely identify as mythical creatures, with others identifying as creatures from fantasy or popular culture. Examples include: angels, demons, dragons, goats, elves, fairies, sprites, aliens, and cartoon characters. Many otherkin believe in the existence of a multitude of parallel universes, and their belief in the existence of supernatural or sapient non-human beings is grounded in that idea.

With regards to their online communities, otherkin largely function without formal authority structures, and mostly focus on support and information gathering, often dividing into more specific groups based on kintype. There are occasional offline gatherings, but the otherkin network is mostly an online phenomenon.

Some otherkin (such as elvenkin) state they are allergic to iron (and products of modern technology), while others (such as dragonkin) state that having no allergies is a sign of otherkin condition. Some otherkin also claim to be especially empathic and attuned to nature. Some state to be able to shapeshift mentally or astrally, meaning that they experience the sense of being in their particular form while not actually changing physically.

The therian and vampire subcultures are related to the otherkin community, and are considered part of it by most otherkin, but are culturally and historically distinct movements of their own, despite some overlap in membership.

A short 11-question Internet game screen called the BIGS was developed by reSTART to assist in the screening of problematic video game and Internet use.

Screening for problematic use in individuals due the ever-changing digital landscape. Researchers Northrup, Lapierre, Kirk and Rae developers of the Internet Process Addiction Test (IPAT) propose that tools measure different processes utilized over the Internet, such as video game play, social networking, sexual activity and web surfing, may be more helpful than a measure of Internet addiction itself, as the Internet is simply a medium which facilities a variety of interactions, some of which are highly addictive, and others less so.

Otherkin are a subculture who socially and spiritually identify as partially or entirely non-human. Some of them surmise that they are, either spiritually or genetically, not human; however, this claim is unsubstantiated. This is explained by some members of the otherkin community as possible through reincarnation, having a non-human soul, ancestry, or symbolic metaphor. Some scholars categorize this identity claim as "religious", because it is largely based on supernatural beliefs. Adherents more typically deny the religiosity of otherkinism, referring to it instead as simply a congenital condition, or a metaphysical state of being.

Because few clinical trials and no meta-analyses have been completed, research is still in the preliminary stages for excessive gaming treatment. The most effective treatments seem to be, as with other addictions and dependencies, a combination of psychopharmacology, psychotherapy and twelve-step programs.

Some countries, such as South Korea, China, the Netherlands, Canada, and the United States, have responded to the perceived threat of video game addiction by opening treatment centers.

A disability pretender is subculture term meaning a person who behaves as if he or she were disabled. It may be classified as a type of factitious disorder or as a medical fetishism.

One theory is that pretenders may be the "missing link" between devotees and wannabes, demonstrating an assumed continuum between those merely attracted to people with disabilities and those who actively wish to become disabled. Many wannabes use pretending as a way to appease the intense emotional pain related to having body integrity identity disorder.

Pretending takes a variety of forms. Some chatroom users on internet sites catering to devotees have complained that chat counterparts they assumed were female were revealed as male devotees. This form of pretending (where a devotee derives pleasure by pretending to be a disabled woman) may indicate a very broad predisposition to pretending among devotees.

Pretending includes dressing and acting in ways typical of disabled people, including making use of aids (Walking sticks, crutches, wheelchairs, mobility scooters, white canes, etc. Pretending may also take the form of a devotee persuading his or her sexual partner to play the role of a disabled person. Pretending may be practiced in private, in intimacy, or in public, and may occupy surprisingly long periods. In the latter case, some pretenders hope that the disability may become permanent, such as through tissue necrosis caused by constricted blood supply.

Apotemnophilia has been studied for a number of years to determine whether this disorder is actually neurological or psychological. However, in-depth research related to apotemnophilia and its correlation to the mind and body are still not clear. Recent research has shown small breakthroughs such that apotemnophiles are three times more likely to want removal of a left limb than right, in accordance with damage to the right parietal lobe, and also in concordance with sufferers of somatoparaphrenia; in addition, skin conductance response is significantly different above and below the line of desired amputation, and the line of desired amputation remains stable over time, with the desire often beginning in early childhood. Among a convenience sample of 52 apotemnophiles recruited from internet groups, the great majority wanted a single leg removed, cut above the knee. There are parallels between apotemnophilia as a motivation for body integrity identity disorder and autogynephilia as a motivation for some cases of male-to-female gender dysphoria.

A 2014 review concluded that

Cyberchondria, otherwise known as 'compucondria', is the unfounded escalation of concerns about common symptomology based on review of search results and literature online. Articles in popular media position cyberchondria anywhere from temporary neurotic excess to adjunct hypochondria. Cyberchondria is a growing concern among many healthcare practitioners as patients can now research any and all symptoms of a rare disease, illness or condition, and manifest a state of medical anxiety.

Attraction to disability or devotism is a sexualised interest in the appearance, sensation and experience of disability. It may extend from normal human sexuality into a type of sexual fetishism. Sexologically, the pathological end of the attraction tends to be classified as a paraphilia. (Note, however, that the very concept "paraphilia" continues to elude satisfactory definition and remains a subject of ongoing debate in both professional and lay communities) Other researchers have approached it as a form of identity disorder. The most common interests are towards amputations, prosthesis, and crutches.

Until the 1990s, it tended to be described mostly as acrotomophilia, at the expense of other disabilities, or of the wish by some to pretend or acquire disability. Bruno (1997) systematised the attraction as factitious disability disorder. A decade on, others argue that erotic target location error is at play, classifying the attraction as an identity disorder. In the standard psychiatric reference "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders", text revision (DSM-IV-tr), the fetish falls under the general category of "Sexual and Gender Identity Disorders" and the more specific category of paraphilia, or sexual fetishes; this classification is preserved in DSM-5.

No true psychiatric medications are prescribed for factitious disorder. However, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) can help manage underlying problems. Medicines such as SSRIs that are used to treat mood disorders can be used to treat FD, as a mood disorder may be the underlying cause of FD. Some authors (such as Prior and Gordon 1997) also report good responses to antipsychotic drugs such as Pimozide. Family therapy can also help. In such therapy, families are helped to better understand patients (the individual in the family with FD) and that person's need for attention.

In this therapeutic setting, the family is urged not to condone or reward the FD individual's behavior. This form of treatment can be unsuccessful if the family is uncooperative or displays signs of denial and/or antisocial disorder. Psychotherapy is another method used to treat the disorder. These sessions should focus on the psychiatrist's establishing and maintaining a relationship with the patient. Such a relationship may help to contain symptoms of FD. Monitoring is also a form that may be indicated for the FD patient's own good; FD (especially proxy) can be detrimental to an individual's health—if they are, in fact, causing true physiological illnesses. Even faked illnesses/injuries can be dangerous, and might be monitored for fear that unnecessary surgery may subsequently be performed.

The word '' means 'substitute'. It is coded in the DSM-IV under Factitious Disorder NOS (not otherwise specified). Münchausen by proxy is the involuntary use of another individual to play the patient role. For example, false symptoms are produced in children by the caregivers or parents, to produce the appearance of illness, or they may give misleading medical histories about their children. The parent may falsify the child's medical history or tamper with laboratory tests to make the child appear sick. Occasionally, in Münchausen by proxy, the caregiver actually injures the child or makes it sick to ensure that the child is treated. For instance, a father whose son is coeliac might knowingly introduce gluten into the diet. Such parents may be validated by the attention that they receive from having a sick child.

Exhibitionism is the act of exposing in a public or semi-public context those parts of one's body that are not normally exposed – for example, the breasts, genitals or buttocks. The practice may arise from a desire or compulsion to expose themselves in such a manner to groups of friends or acquaintances, or to strangers for their amusement or sexual satisfaction or to shock the bystander. Exposing oneself only to an intimate partner is normally not regarded as exhibitionism. In law, the act of exhibitionism may be called indecent exposure, "exposing one's person", or other expressions.

The term "klismaphilia" was coined in 1973 by Dr. Joanne Denko, an early investigator in this field, to describe the activities of some of her patients. A person with klismaphilia is a "klismaphile" or "klismaphiliac".

Candaulism is a sexual practice or fantasy in which a man exposes his female partner, or images of her, to other people for their voyeuristic pleasure.

The term may also be applied to the practice of undressing or otherwise exposing a female partner to others, or urging or forcing her to engage in sexual relations with a third person, such as during a swinging activity. Similarly, the term may also be applied to the posting of personal images of a female partner on the internet or urging or forcing her to wear clothing which reveals her physical attractiveness to others, such as by wearing very brief clothing, such as a microskirt, tight-fitting or see-through clothing or a low-cut top.

Cash, Rae and Winkler, in a paper titled "Internet Addiction: A brief summary of research and practice", describe early interventions used in the treatment of Internet addiction (IAD), and Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD).

Cognitive Behavior Therapy is designed to help individuals learn how to control their thoughts and feelings. This control is to prevent harmful functions that may trigger impulses to escape into the virtual world. The therapy is setup for three stages. The first stage is to instruct the patient to identify there is a problem and how much a problem computers are creating. Identification is done by using a log to document duration, events, day, of online activity. This can be used to show in black and white how much time is spent online and to help create a realistic goal for patients to strive for. Using this log the patients interact with a therapist to make a schedule for online activity to promote new healthier habits. The second aspect of the treatment program is more for the cognitive aspect, as in, digging into what triggers the excessive online activity. The third phase is to confront or resolve the issues in the patient's life that lead to them seeking escape things via the Internet.

One source states that a major reason the Internet is so appealing is the lack of limits and the absence of accountability.

Professionals generally agree that, for Internet overuse, controlled use is a more practical goal than total abstinence.

Families in the People's Republic of China have turned to unlicensed training camps that offer to "wean" their children, often in their teens, from overuse of the Internet. The training camps have been associated with the death of at least one youth. In November 2009, the government of the People's Republic of China banned physical punishment to "wean" teens from the Internet. Electro-shock therapy had already been banned.

In August 2013, researchers at the MIT Media Lab developed a USB-connected keyboard accessory that would "punish" users – with a small electric jolt – who spent too much time on a particular website.

In July 2014, an internet de-addiction center was started in Delhi, the capital city of India by a non profit organization, Uday Foundation. The Foundation provides counseling to the children and teens with internet addiction disorder.

In August 2009, "ReSTART", a United States-based residential treatment center for "problematic digital media use, internet addiction, and video game addiction", opened near Seattle, Washington, United States. It offers a 7- to 12-week intensive program for adolescents and adults intended to help people set device limits, and address digital distractions.

In 2005, Professor Kiesler called Internet addiction a fad illness. In her view, she said, television addiction is worse. She added that she was completing a study of heavy Internet users, which showed the majority had sharply reduced their time on the computer over the course of a year, indicating that even problematic use was self-corrective.