A rare giant gastric trichobezoar in a young female patient: Case report and review of the literature

Abstract

A bezoar is an aggregate of undigested foreign materials that accumulate in the gastrointestinal tract and may cause serious symptoms or even life‐threatening complications. Trichobezoars, a subtype of bezoars, are a rare condition usually occurring in females with psychiatric disorders, with Rapunzel syndrome being an uncommon form of trichobezoar.

The case of the discovery of two bezoars in a teenager with developmental intestinal obstruction

“…Сохраняют свою значимость навыки клинического осмотра врача, когда иногда удается пропальпировать плотные подвижные образования в проекции желудка и кишечника. Вместе с тем, ключевыми методами диагностики являются инструментальные -рентгенологические методики, в том числе компьютерная томография, а также классическое эндоскопическое исследование ЖКТ [20,21].…”

Acute Case of Trichobezoar Diagnosed From Computed Tomography and 3D Images: Rapunzel Syndrome Re-examined

“…A bezoar is a mass of undigested material in the gastrointestinal tract [ 1 , 2 ]. Bezoars can be further categorized based on their contents.…”

Huge gastric trichobezoar caused by involuntary nocturnal trichophagia and trichotillomania in a female adolescent

“…Gastric trichobezoar, or Rapunzel's syndrome, consist of the accumulation of chewed hair in the stomach and can extend to other structures of the digestive tract [1] . The population that most frequently presents with this condition are young women with psychiatric antecedents, who suffer from trichotillomania or trichophagia [2] . However, there are no precise statistical data on the incidence of gastric trichobezoar in this risk group.…”

“…In general, it is estimated that the incidence of trichobezoar is around 0.5 % [3] , [4] . The manifestations caused will be related to the location and extension of the trichobezoar, so they are unspecific, giving great relevance to the psychiatric history as a plausible risk factor [2] , [4] .…”

“…However, another point to highlight is the fact that in the absence of psychiatric history and lack of information, the surgical diagnosis can identify psychological or psychiatric factors not previously investigated, which can definitively solve the primary cause, preventing the recurrence of trichobezoar in the future. Case reports and case series have reported that trichophagia is a behavior that is strongly associated with trichotillomania [2] , [3] , [4] , [5] . However, involuntary nocturnal trichotillomania is more complex to diagnose and treat, and may be referred almost exclusively by an observant family member.…”