Mysophobia
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Mysophobia is a term used to describe a pathological fear of contamination and germs. Someone who has such a fear is referred to as a mysophobe. The term was introduced by Dr. William Alexander Hammond in 1879 when describing a case of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) exhibited in repeatedly washing one's hands. This phobia is sometimes referred to as germophobia or germaphobia, a combination of germ and phobia to mean fear of germs, as well as bacillophobia and bacteriophobia. Mysophobia has long been related to the OCD of constantly washing one's hands. However, Harry Stack Sullivan, an American psychologist and psychoanalyst, notes that while fear of dirt underlies the compulsion of a person with this kind of OCD, his or her mental state is not about germs; instead, this person feels the hands must be washed. Other names for abnormal persistent fear of dirt and filth include molysmophobia or molysomophobia, rhypophobia, and rupophobia.
In fiction
Many fictional characters display symptoms of mysophobia, including Jerry Seinfeld and David Puddy in Seinfeld (Puddy says he is a recovering germophobe), Adrian Monk in the television series Monk, Niles Crane in the television series Frasier, Emma Pillsbury in the television series Glee, Roy Waller in the 2003 film Matchstick Men,The Devil on Ugly Americans, Dr. Sheldon Cooper on The Big Bang Theory, Edd in the cartoon Ed, Edd, n' Eddy, and Dr. Noseworthy in the 2009 film Shorts.
In James Patterson's novel Double Cross, detective Alex Cross has a patient who suffers from mysophobia (p67, Headline publishers).