INDIANA, PA. Mother faces endangerment charges

The mother may suffer from a rare psychiatric disorder causing such actions.
INDIANA, Pa. (AP) -- A woman was charged with administering near-lethal doses of Benadryl and Tylenol to her 4-year-old son, and one doctor has noted the possibility that she may be suffering from a rare psychiatric disorder that can lead mothers to abuse their children.
Catherine Irene Gerlesky, 31, of Indiana, was arrested Thursday on charges of assault, endangering the welfare of children and reckless endangerment.
A single mother of three children, Gerlesky was being held in the Indiana County Jail on $100,000 bond.
Pennsylvania State Police said in court documents that Gerlesky intentionally poisoned her son in June with Benadryl, an antihistamine, then with Tylenol, a pain reliever, as he was recovering in a hospital. The boy recovered, police said.
Medical condition
The allegations, taken with medical records detailing the boy's history of health problems, led doctors to conclude the woman may be suffering from Munchausen's syndrome by proxy.
Court records said a doctor at Children's Hospital in Pittsburgh noted the possibility of that rare disorder after Gerlesky's son was admitted in June and his medical records were reviewed.
Munchausen's condition often compels caregivers to harm their children or exaggerate or falsely report their children's medical conditions.
Police said Gerlesky initially denied giving her son the drugs but later made a written statement saying she had given the drugs to him out of worry about his condition.
"I love my kids very much and wouldn't intentionally hurt any one of my kids," she said in the statement. "I am in therapy twice a week to address these problems."