Girl, 4, rushed to hospital over lump in stomach before horrified doctors realise what it is

WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT: The unnamed child was admitted to hospital after suffering pain, with other symptoms including vomiting and feeling full up after eating only small amounts of food

Doctors were left in shock after discovering what had caused a four-year-old girl's stomach to bulge.

The child, whose identity has been kept confidential, was taken to hospital following a week of enduring pain and a noticeable lump in her stomach.

She had also been vomiting, feeling full after consuming small amounts of food. Upon examination, doctors discovered a huge 4x4cm lump of hair.

The child's parents reported that she had been consuming hair for two weeks prior to her hospitalisation, and her hair had noticeably thinned.

The condition is known as Rapunzel syndrome, which arises when someone ingests hair, leading to a mass forming in the stomach. Her parents stated that there was no family history of eating disorders, and the mother's eating habits during pregnancy were normal.

The young girl underwent a gastronomy procedure to cut into the stomach, revealing the enormous hairball, details of which were shared in a recently published medical journal.

Doctors at the Institute of Medicine at Tribhuvan University in Kathmandu, Nepal, described it as a stomach-shaped mass with a tail, which was safely removed from her stomach.

The young girl was assessed for the hair-related mental conditions Trichotillomania and Trichophagia. However, doctors have reported that she did not return for her regular psychiatry follow-up appointments.

In a similar incident in 2017, a 16-year-old girl passed away after swallowing her hair, which led to an infected hairball forming in her stomach. Jasmine Beever developed an ulcer, which burst and resulted in organ failure.

Rapunzel syndrome predominantly impacts girls aged over 12, according to Dr. Katharine Phillips, a professor of psychiatry and human behaviour at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University.

Around 10 to 20 per cent of these eat their hair, which is called trichophagia, with hairballs potentially leading to ulcers or the blocking of the intestinal tract.

Meanwhile, trichotillomania refers to a mental disorder whereby people feel the urge to pull out their own hair, with people often pulling out hair from their scalp when they're children.

Yet, some people will pull hair from other areas of the body, including their own eyebrows and eyelashes, eventually leading to hair thinning and bald spots.

Healthline explains that trichotillomania can sometimes lead to permanent hair loss and scarring, often among those who continue to pull their hair when they're adults, with some also suffering from trichophagia.

You can learn more about Rapunzel Syndrome on the Healthline website here.