Surgery to remove half-kilo hairball from 5-year-old patient's stomach

A 5-year-old boy from Lien Huong commune (Lam Dong province) was admitted to Ninh Thuan General Hospital (Khanh Hoa province) with abdominal pain, vomiting and exhaustion. Doctors performed surgery and successfully removed a half-kilogram hairball from the boy's stomach.

After surgery, the patient was able to walk normally, eat and drink and was in stable health - Photo: Provided by the hospital

On the afternoon of July 16, a representative of Ninh Thuan General Hospital said that doctors from the general surgery department had just successfully performed emergency surgery on a 5-year-old patient who had abdominal pain and vomiting due to a 0.5kg hairball stuck in his stomach.

The patient is a 5-year-old boy, residing in Lien Huong commune ( Lam Dong province), admitted to Ninh Thuan General Hospital with abdominal pain, vomiting and physical exhaustion.

During the examination, the doctors discovered a hard, mobile mass in the epigastric region with clear boundaries. The ultrasound results showed that the stomach was dilated to the navel, with a mass measuring 87mm in size and many lumps of food measuring 48x115mm.

After examination, the hospital's general surgeons performed open stomach surgery and successfully removed the hairball weighing about 0.5 kg. This hairball filled most of the patient's stomach and part of the duodenum.

Hairball removed from patient's stomach by surgeons - Photo: Provided by hospital

Doctor Ung Van Hieu - deputy head of the general surgery department at Ninh Thuan General Hospital - said that according to medical literature, trichophagia is a rare disorder, often associated with Rapunzel syndrome - a condition in which ingested hair cannot be digested, accumulates in the stomach and causes serious health problems.

Trichophagia often occurs in children and adolescents due to psychological and neurological factors. The consequences of trichophagia are very dangerous, especially when hair accumulates in the stomach to form a mass (Bezoar) causing intestinal obstruction, stomach ulcers, and even perforation. Common symptoms include abdominal pain, nausea, weight loss, and digestive disorders.

Dr. Hieu recommends that parents should closely monitor their children. When detecting unusual signs such as hair-eating addiction, parents should take their children to medical facilities for timely consultation, diagnosis and treatment.

DUC CUONG

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/phau-thuat-lay-bui-toc-nang-nua-ky-khoi-da-day-benh-nhi-5-tuoi-20250716152916428.htm