Hyderabad: Recently, doctors removed a hairball from the stomach of a 10-year-old girl from Vasai, Mumbai. The girl had a compulsive habit of eating hair, which led to Rapunzel syndrome. She had to undergo a gastroscopy to remove the 50 cm hairball that was stuck in her stomach and had spread to her small intestine.

The girl was seen by local doctors after suffering from acute abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting for 15 to 20 days, but the cause could not be determined initially. The child suffered from extreme abdominal pain with a palpable solid to hard mass, severe malnutrition, severe weight loss and constipation that lasted for four to five days.

An ultrasound revealed that the cause was a hairball. It was confirmed that she suffers from trichophagia, compulsive hair eating associated with trichotillomania (hair pulling). As a result of swallowing hair, she developed Rapunzel syndrome, a rare condition in which a giant hairball, called a trichobezoar, becomes trapped in the stomach and spreads into the small intestine. This causes the hairballs to form long, braid-like extensions.

The pediatric surgery team at Bai Jerbai Wadia Hospital for Children in Parel surgically removed the 50 cm long hairball through gastroenterology after a psychological examination and counseling by psychiatrists.

Doctors say that Rapunzel syndrome is most likely to occur in young women with mental disorders. Compared to men, women are much more likely to suffer from this disorder. In about 8 out of 10 cases, it affects children, teenagers and young women under 30.

The doctors also warned the parents about such worrying illnesses.