In Lviv, doctors from the Center for Pediatric Medicine "Okhmatdyt" successfully performed a unique operation on a 15-year-old girl who suffered from Rapunzel syndrome, a rare disease that causes a person to unconsciously swallow their own hair. Doctors discovered a huge 40-centimeter tuft of hair in her stomach, which weighed almost a kilogram and was causing severe pain and digestive disorders.
The patient is originally from Zaporizhzhia, and currently lives with her family in Lviv as an IDP. At the age of 7, she was already diagnosed with a trichobezoar (a foreign body in the stomach consisting of hair that has stuck together into a dense stone - ed.). For the past two years, the girl has complained of abdominal pain, vomiting, problems with eating, and loss of appetite. She was treated for gastritis for a long time, but there was no improvement.
The girl swallowed the hair mechanically and unconsciously and had no idea that it could lead to serious problems.
Due to the large size of the formation, it was impossible to remove it laparoscopically (through punctures in the body), and surgeons had to completely open the stomach. The girl is now feeling well and is undergoing rehabilitation, including with a psychologist.
Doctors warn
Rapunzel syndrome is a condition in which a child swallows hair, which then accumulates in the stomach. It most often occurs in teenage girls with long hair who have a habit of chewing it. Children who are experiencing severe stress, have obsessive-compulsive disorders, psycho-emotional disorders, or problems with the gastrointestinal tract are at risk.
