[Ectoparasites delusions in old age (Ekbom syndrome)].

The writers present the case of a patient diagnosed as suffering from a typical delusion of parasitosis which is also called "Ekbom's Syndrom". They remind the characteristics of an encapsulated delusional system. They try to show the particular role of semantic significations played by the words "parasitis" and "skin" as a defense against a death or inferiority anxiety in old patients.