How do you diagnose Rapunzel syndrome?

The diagnosis of Rapunzel syndrome is possible via imaging, and endoscopy is a direct and accurate diagnostic method. In terms of treatment, laparotomy remains superior to laparoscopic surgery. After the surgical removal of trichobezoars, long-term follow-up combined with psychiatric consultation is recommended.
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What are the symptoms of Rapunzel syndrome?

The Rapunzel syndrome is an unusual form of trichobezoar found in patients with a history of psychiatric disorders, trichotillomania (habit of hair pulling) and trichophagia (morbid habit of chewing the hair), consequently developing gastric bezoars. The principal symptoms are vomiting and epigastric pain.
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How do you get Rapunzel syndrome?

Rapunzel syndrome is an extremely rare intestinal condition in humans resulting from ingesting hair (trichophagia). The syndrome is named after the long-haired girl Rapunzel in the fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. Trichophagia is sometimes associated with the hair-pulling disorder trichotillomania.
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How do I know if I have a hairball in my stomach?

Symptoms of bezoars
  1. feeling full after eating very little food.
  2. a lack of appetite.
  3. nausea.
  4. vomiting.
  5. abdominal pain.
  6. weight loss.
  7. anemia.
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Is Rapunzel syndrome rare?

Rapunzel syndrome is an extremely rare condition seen in adolescents or young females with psychiatric disorders consisting of a gastric trichobezoar with an extension within the small bowel. The delays in diagnosis are common since in its early stages, it is usually asymptomatic.
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Rapunzel Syndrome



How do you stop Rapunzel syndrome?

Treatment of Rapunzel Syndrome requires immediate invasive surgery to remove the hairball, or trichobezoar. Psychotherapy and possibly anti-depressant treatment is also used to address the root cause of the hair eating.
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How do you treat trichophagia?

Types of therapy that may be helpful for trichotillomania include:
  1. Habit reversal training. This behavior therapy is the primary treatment for trichotillomania. ...
  2. Cognitive therapy. This therapy can help you identify and examine distorted beliefs you may have in relation to hair pulling.
  3. Acceptance and commitment therapy.
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How do you detect trichobezoar?

What are the Symptoms and Signs of Trichobezoars?
  1. Exhaustion or fatigue.
  2. Stomach pain.
  3. Bad breath.
  4. Vomiting.
  5. Black tarry stools due to bleeding.
  6. Discomfort in the chest.
  7. Patchy loss of hair, which may be indicative of trichotillomania.
  8. Dizzy feeling.
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What autoimmune causes gastroparesis?

Michael Cline: There are several that are directly associated with gastroparesis. One of the most common ones is a syndrome called GAD antibody, GAD antibody. This is an antibody that was known about in Type 1 diabetes.
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How do you get rid of a bezoar belly?

If the bezoar does not dissolve or if people have moderate to severe symptoms, doctors can try to remove the bezoar by doing endoscopy. During endoscopy, doctors sometimes use forceps, a laser, or other instruments to break bezoars into pieces so that they can pass through or be removed more easily.
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Does hair stay in your stomach forever?

Hair is made up of proteins called keratin which cannot be broken down by our body. They can only be processed at very high temperatures which do not exist inside our body. So, when you swallow small strands of hair accidentally, they just end up passing out of the body with other undigested food.
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Is eating your hair a disorder?

Hair-pulling disorder

People who compulsively swallow their own hair are said to have a psychiatric disorder called trichophagia. The disorder is related to a slightly more common one in which people have an irresistible urge to pull out their hair, called trichotillomania or hair-pulling disorder.
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Do I have trichobezoar?

Symptoms of trichobezoars include abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, anorexia, becoming full easily, weakness, weight loss, and abdominal mass. The most common presenting symptoms of trichobezoar include a palpable abdominal mass and noticeable hair loss.
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What causes trichophagia?

What causes trichophagia? Trichophagia is likely to be the cumulative result of multiple factors, such as genetic predisposition, social environment, and neurobiological factors. There are several psychoanalytic theories and associations, although none are supported by empirical evidence.
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Why does my daughter eat hair?

Medical experts believe hair eating disorder is a rare condition believed to be caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain. In some cases, a child will pull hair from their own head to consume, but some also eat hair from hairbrushes.
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Can you poop out hair?

Trichobezoars, undigested accumulations of hair in the gastrointestinal tract, are the most common type of bezoars, commonly seen in patients under 30 years of age[1]. In 90% of cases, the patients are women with long hair and emotional or psychiatric disorders.
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Can you see gastroparesis in an endoscopy?

What medical tests do doctors use to diagnose gastroparesis? Doctors use lab tests, upper gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy, imaging tests, and tests to measure how fast your stomach is emptying its contents to diagnose gastroparesis.
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Do you poop with gastroparesis?

The delayed stomach emptying and reduced digestive motility associated with gastroparesis can have a significant impact on bowel function. Just as changes in bowel motility can lead to things like diarrhea and constipation, so also changes in stomach motility can cause a number of symptoms: nausea. vomiting.
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Is gastroparesis a neurological disorder?

Gastroparesis with neurological symptoms might indicate a demyelinating disease of the central nervous system and predict development of MS in the future. MRI of the brain is recommended in patients with neurological deficits and symptoms of delayed gastric emptying.
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What is gastric trichobezoar?

]. A trichobezoar is a mass of undigested hair within the gastrointestinal tract. Trichobezoars are often associated with trichotillomania (hair pulling), and trichophagia (hair swallowing).
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How are Trichobezoars removed?

The standard surgical procedure for removal of trichobezoar is laparotomy, opening of stomach and removing the mass of Trichobezoar. It however requires a large surgical incision, a big opening in stomach, increased risk of complications, long hospital stay and a bad scar on the abdomen.
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How do you get rid of Phytobezoars?

Surgical removal of phytobezoars may be necessary, and laparoscopic surgery has recently been used for gastric bezoar removal. Endoscopic options that have been attempted include endoscopic suction and mechanical fragmentation of the bezoar using a pulsating jet of water with subsequent extraction.
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Can you self diagnose trichotillomania?

TTM isn't a condition you should diagnose on your own. That's because a trained and experienced mental healthcare provider is better prepared to determine if you have TTM or another health condition.
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How does a hair follicle look like?

In biological terms, hair follicle looks like a tunnel-shaped structure situated in the epidermis (outer layer of the skin) [2]. Hair growth starts at the bottom of the hair follicle. The root of your hair is made up of protein (keratin) [3] and derives its nutrition by blood from the blood vessels on the skin.
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Is trichotillomania a neurological disorder?

Trichotillomania is a neuropsychiatric disorder characterized by the repetitive pulling out of one's own hair, leading to noticeable hair loss and significant functional impairment.
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