Perils of Paranoia

"Perils of Paranoia" is the eighth episode of the eighth season of the American television medical drama series House and the 163rd overall episode of the series. It aired on Fox on November 28, 2011.

A district attorney appears to suffer from a heart attack while cross-examining a witness. The initial diagnosis is hyper-anxiety, but the team finds an arsenal at the patient's home and start to believe that his extreme paranoia is a physical symptom. Wilson becomes convinced that House is hiding something at 221B Baker Street, which leads to an epic battle of wits between the two men. Park tries to be more social with her workmates, while Taub and Chase wonder why Foreman hasn't had a romantic relationship in a while.

In the middle of devastating a witness on cross-examination, a district attorney goes to the judge to ask for a recess because he thinks he is having a heart attack. The judge calls for an ambulance. Foreman tells House about the case; the patient didn't have a heart attack. House thinks it's an anxiety attack, but Foreman has already ruled it out by lying to the patient to get him to relax. House gets interested.

House calls his team together to do a differential. After they go through the possibilities, House figures it's a toxin and orders tests and an environmental scan. He also tells them to check out the patient's wife because he thinks she may have done it. When Chase complains he doesn't want to do the work alone, House allows him the choice of Taub or Park. Chase and Adams both call dibs on Taub, but Adams “settles” for Park.

Chase and Taub run into Foreman on the elevator and compliment him for lying to the patient to rule out anxiety. However, they are concerned Foreman is misbehaving and tell him to get a girlfriend. Foreman assures them he's just trying to make sure House does his job. Chase tells him that a girlfriend is a better idea than trying to keep track of House. Taub agrees despite his alimony and child support obligations.

Adams and Park are driving to the patient's house. Adams is telling her how wonderful her new car is, but Park thinks she's avoiding talking about why she doesn't want to work with her. Adams assures Park that House's belief that no-one wants to work with her is simply his way of getting under everyone's skin.

The wife is talking to Taub and dismissing the possibility that someone would want to poison her husband. Everyone at work likes him, even the criminals he prosecutes. She says he only eats stuff he brings from home. Taub thinks the patient is afraid of something, but when Chase talks to the patient, he tells Chase that his first job was at the health department and he knows how dirty restaurants can be. Chase asks him if he got any strange packages or letters, but the patient denies it and notes his three kids are healthy and it's unlikely they would not have been exposed to something that made him sick. Chase brings up the possibility of his wife deliberately poisoning him, and the patient dismisses it. The wife tells the same thing to Taub.