The delusion that impostors have replaced others or the self. The syndrome typically follows the development of negative feelings toward the other person that the subject cannot accept and attributes, instead, to the impostor. It has been reported in patients with paranoid schizophrenia and other forms of organic brain disease.
A specific delusional belief in which the person is convinced that some important person, commonly the spouse, has been replaced by an identical-appearing impostor. This occurs commonly in schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, delusional disorder, and postpartum psychosis. It can also occur in neurological disorders such as cerebral hemorrhage, epilepsy, Parkinson disease, and Alzheimer’s disease or after the person has had brain surgery.
The patient’s delusion that a close relative or friend has been replaced by an impostor.
The misconception (erroneous conviction) that a family member or acquaintance has been substituted by an indistinguishable imposter. Capgras’ syndrome, also referred to as the “hallucination of duplicates,” is commonly observed in individuals with paranoid schizophrenia, although it can also manifest in certain organic brain disorders and affective disorders.