Texas mother Kaylene Bowen has beenaccused of injuring her 8-year-old son Christopher with unnecessary medical care.She allegedly subjected Christopher to 323 doctor's visits and 13 surgeries, even though he was healthy.The allegations seem to fit the pattern of Munchausen syndrome by proxy, a rare mental illness that's also a form of child abuse.It's when a caretakerinvents fake symptoms to make it look like a child is sick.8-year-old Christopher Bowen has spent parts his short life in a wheelchair, eating from a feeding tube, and undergoing major surgeries. But a shocking new report in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram says that he's been perfectly healthy the entire time' and that his mother has spent years faking every aspect his "illness."On December 6, Christopher's mother Kaylene Bowen, of Dallas, Texas, was arrested after being accused ofcausing "serious bodily injury" to her son.Kaylene allegedly subjected Christopher to 323 doctor or hospital visits and 13 major surgeries that weren't actually necessary, the Star-Telegram reported, citing a "Child Protective Services petition" filed with a court in Dallas County. Kaylene claimed that her son suffered from a rare genetic disorder and later, from cancer, while the invasive treatments led to three life-threatening infections, according to the Star-Telegram report.But Christopher apparently wasn't sick at all.(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));PostbyKaylene Bowen.CBS DFW spoke with Christopher's father, Ryan Crawford, ina report that confirmed these details."He almost died three different times due to infections from the 13 different surgeries," Crawford, who did not have a relationship with Kaylene and spent years fighting for custody of his son, told CBS DFW. "He has a long road ahead of him. I hate that he had to go through all that. I hate it. I hate it so much."The Star-Telegram notes that Kaylene's alleged behaviors "fit the model" of Munchausen syndrome by proxy' a rare mental illness and form of child abuse in which a caretaker pretends that his or her child is sick in order to get attention.Munchausen syndrome by proxyoften goes undetected, according to the Cleveland Clinic.It's now known as Factitious Disorder Imposed on Another (FDIA), and it is officially recognized as a mental illness, the Cleveland Clinic notes. Experts still don't know exactly why it happens, though some theories say it's linked to a caretaker's childhood trauma or present-day stress. There are no reliable statistics to say how often it happens because many cases can goundetected, but it's estimated to be very rare.(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));PostbyKaylene Bowen.The Cleveland Clinic also explains that people with FDIA aren't seeking benefits like financial gain. Instead, their actions stem from an "inner need" to get the kind of sympathy and attention usually given to sick people and their families. Interestingly, it's most common in mothers, especially those who work in the medical field and know a lot about medical care.In order to invent symptoms in a healthy child, mothers may add blood to a child's urine or stool, withhold food, falsify lab results or medical records, give children medications that make them sick, or even infect their IV lines, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH).And it can be particularly hard to spot because the caretaker appears totally devoted to his or her child, the NIH adds. From a distance, that devotion can seem both normal and admirable.One of the most famous suspected cases of FDIA in recent years involved a woman named Dee Dee Blancharde and her daughter, Gypsy Rose. Reports say that Dee Dee kept Gypsy in a wheelchair and told others that her daughter was mentally incompetent, even though she wasn't. Their story is now the subject of a documentary called "Mommy Dead and Dearest."It is not clear if Kaylene Bowen actually has FDIA.INSIDER reached out to Dallas County to seek comment on the case from Kaylene's court-appointed attorney, but the request was declined.After Christopher was removed from his mother's care and admitted to a hospital, he ate normally and showed no need for oxygen, an IV, or feeding tube, the Star-Telegram reported. According to an affidavit written by a Dallas Police detective and quoted in the Star-Telegram, Christopher "wasup and playing most of the time" during the hospital stay. When reached for comment, a spokesperson for Texas Child Protective Services declined to discuss Christopher's current medical condition.Read the entire story from the Fort Worth Star-Telegram right here.If you or a loved one need help finding treatment for mental illness, contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration for free support by calling800-662-HELP or visiting findtreatment.samhsa.gov.Join the conversation about this storyNOW WATCH: Doctors are recommending a radical new approach to treat diabetes ' and it could be a game-changer
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