Hairball removed from teen girl’s stomach at Sri Ramachandra Hospital
CHENNAI: Doctors at Sri Ramachandra Hospital removed a hairball from the stomach of a 13-year-old girl. The girl presented to the hospital with complaints of stomach pain. After thorough investigations, she was found to have a huge ball of entangled hair in her stomach.
The hairball was found to extend for a long distance like a tail (Rapunzel syndrome, a very rare disease), causing obstruction and perforation of the intestine, according to the press release. After the surgery, the girl recovered and was sent home with regular psychiatric medications.”
Eating one’s hair is known as trichophagia. In the long run, this can result in the formation of hairballs causing serious intestinal complications. Hence it is prudent to identify and treat it,” the release quoted Dr Prakash Agarwal, head of the department, Paediatric Surgery.