Abstract

Trichobezoar is the presence of tangled hairs in the digestive lumen. It occurs in young children and adults, mostly females, with psychic disorders. Clinical symptoms may evolve chronically or be revealed by a complication such as digestive obstruction.
The investigation is based essentially on a fibroscopy and a CT scan.
Treatment is mainly surgical, combined with post-operative psychological care.
We report the case of a 17-year-old girl referred to the emergency department for acute intestinal obstruction. Abdomino-pelvic CT confirmed the organic nature of a small bowel obstruction on trichobezoar. The patient underwent a median laparotomy and was referred for psychological follow-up.

Key words: acute intestinal obstruction, trichobezoar, CT scan, psychic disorders