In Lviv, doctors of the Ohmatdit Pediatric Medicine have successfully performed a unique operation of a 15-year-old girl who suffered from Rapunzel syndrome-a rare disease that causes a person to swallow their own hair unconsciously. Doctors found in her stomach a huge 40-centimeter hair tufted, which weighed almost a kilogram and caused severe pain and digestive disorders.
The patient is originally from Zaporozhye, now lives with his family in Lviv as IDPs. At the age of 7, she had already detected trichobezoar (a foreign body in a stomach, which consists of hair, which sticks into a dense stone - ed.). For the last two years, the girl has complained of abdominal pain, vomiting, problems with eating and loss of appetite. For a long time she was treated with gastritis, but the improvement did not occur.
The girl swallowed her hair mechanically and unconsciously and did not suspect that it could lead to serious problems.
Due to the large size of the formation, it was impossible to remove it with laparoscopic method (due to punctures), and surgeons had to completely open the stomach. Now the girl is feeling well and is undergoing rehab, including with a psychologist.
Doctors warn
Rapunzel syndrome is a condition in which the baby swallows the hair, and then it accumulates in the stomach. It is most common in teenage girls with long hair who have a habit of chewing it. At risk, children who are experiencing severe stress have obsessive conditions, psycho-emotional disorders, or problems with the gastrointestinal tract.
