"Unique medical case": In Lviv, doctors removed a kilogram of hair from a 15-year-old girl's stomach. Photo

In Lviv's Center for Pediatric Medicine at the Ohmatdyt Hospital, surgeons removed a kilogram trichobezoar from a 15-year-old girl. Because of the hair in her stomach, the child had abdominal pain, nausea, loss of appetite, and difficulty eating.

The doctors shared this unique medical case on their Facebook page. It is known that the minor patient is from Zaporizhzhia, but lives in Lviv with her family as an internally displaced person.

She was first diagnosed with trichobezoar at the age of 7 and underwent surgery in her hometown. However, over the past two years, the girl has started to complain of feeling unwell again: pain, nausea, and loss of appetite.

For a long time, she was treated for gastritis, but her condition did not improve. Only after an examination at the Center for Pediatric Medicine was the real cause of her problems found.

The girl had been unconsciously swallowing her hair, not even realizing that it could have serious consequences.

"We performed a diagnostic gastroscopy, during which we realized that the cause was trichobezoar. So we decided to operate on the child. Vomiting and problems with eating were caused by it. Liquid food could still pass through the intestines, but solid food could not," explained pediatric surgeon Mykola Mykyta.

The operation was complicated. The trichobezoar was 40 centimeters long and weighed a whole kilogram.

Due to the large size of the mass, it was impossible to remove it laparoscopically, so the doctors had to open the stomach completely. Now the girl is feeling well and is undergoing rehabilitation, including under the supervision of a psychologist.

"To prevent this case from happening again, it is very important that the child continues to work with a psychologist. Such habits are often the result of deep stress, anxiety disorders, or even depression. Psychological help will help find safe ways to overcome stress and prevent similar situations from happening again in the future," said surgeon Ihor Hulavskyi.

The team that treated the patient:

– pediatric surgeon Roman Stetsyk, head of the Clinic of Emergency and Minimally Invasive Surgery

– pediatric surgeon Ihor Hulavskyi;

– pediatric surgeon Mykola Mykyta;

– ultrasound doctor Volodymyr Hapaliak;

– anesthesiologist Volodymyr Mishchuk;

– operating room nurse I. Kret.

What should parents know?

Rapunzel syndrome is a condition when a person unconsciously swallows hair and it accumulates in the stomach. It most often occurs in teenage girls with long hair who have a habit of chewing it. The risk group includes children who are under severe stress, and have anxiety, emotional disturbances, and digestive problems.

At first, the symptoms may be subtle, but over time, abdominal pain, nausea, loss of appetite, and other disorders appear.

"Parents should take an interest in their children's emotional state and ask them what worries them. If they notice such neurotic manifestations as biting nails, cuticles, or picking hair, they should consult specialists: surgeons and psychologists. It is also useful for children to have emotional relief during the day: sports, breathing exercises for relaxation, various games," advised psychologist Myroslava Chorna.

Every year, the hospital's Center for Pediatric Medicine operates on two or three such cases. If the trichobezoar is still small, it can be removed endoscopically, so it is important to go to the hospital in time.

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