STEALING LATELY - A CASE OF LATE-ONSET KLEPTOMANIA

The case of a 77-year-old woman first diagnosed with kleptomania is pr esented to indicate a possible late-onset course of this disorder. Par ticularly striking about this patient's history of shoplifting behavio rs was the absence of an onset prior to the age of 73. Her pattern of stealing did not begin at an early age, and was not sporadic or episod ic over the course of several years. The treatment course and patient outcome are discussed in light of DSM-IV diagnostic criteria. (C) 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.