Archive · 3 Oct 2026
Doctors Remove One-Kilogram Hair Mass From Girl’s Stomach and Intestine
A nine-year-old girl had a large ball of hair inside her stomach and small intestine.
It was causing a blockage and making her have stomach pain and vomit.
Doctors used scans and an endoscopy to find the problem.
A surgical team removed about one kilogram of hair.
The girl recovered, started eating normally again and went home.
The condition is called Rapunzel syndrome when a hairball reaches from the stomach into the small intestine.
Doctors say swallowed hair can build up because the body cannot digest it.
The hospital said fewer than 100 cases have been reported around the world.
Doctors at NIMS Medicity removed a one-kilogram hair mass from a nine-year-old girl’s stomach and small intestine.
The girl was admitted with persistent abdominal pain and vomiting.
Scans showed severe intestinal obstruction, and an endoscopy confirmed a large hair mass.
The surgery was led by senior paediatric surgeon Dr Biju I G Nair.
The girl recovered, resumed eating normally and was discharged; hospital authorities said fewer than 100 Rapunzel syndrome cases have been reported worldwide.
- Who
- A nine-year-old girl; the surgery was led by Dr Biju I G Nair and a hospital team.
- What
- Doctors surgically removed a one-kilogram hair mass from her stomach and small intestine.
- When
- The hospital authorities reported the case on Saturday; no calendar date was specified.
- Where
- NIMS Medicity in Neyyattinkara, near Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.
- Why
- The hair mass caused severe intestinal obstruction and was associated with persistent abdominal pain and vomiting.
- Patient
- Nine-year-old girl
- Mass removed
- About one kilogram of hair
- Location of mass
- Stomach and small intestine
- Diagnosis
- Rapunzel syndrome
- Hospital
- NIMS Medicity, Neyyattinkara
- Reported cases
- Hospital authorities said fewer than 100 cases have been reported worldwide
- Outcome
- The girl recovered, resumed eating normally and was discharged