Trichotillomania

A disorder that involves recurrent, irresistible urges to pull out body hair.
The urges involve pulling out hair from the scalp, eyebrows, or other areas of the body.
Symptoms include compulsive hair pulling and hair loss, such as bald patches on the scalp. Social and work functioning may be affected.
Treatment options include counseling and medications, such as antidepressants.

 

Cluster Number:
Wiki Number: PW220
Diagnosis: Trichotillomania
US Patients: 0.6% to 4%
World Patients:
Sex Ratio: B;G10; M;F3
Age Onset: childhood or 9-13 and then continues into adulthood if there are underlying psychiatric causes
Brain Area: basal ganglia develop a habit and the frontal lobes don’t stop them; extra gray matter (interpretation)
Symptoms: Compulsive hair-pulling from scalp, eyebrows, eyelashes, face, arms and legs – and rarely, elsewhere,may also eat the hair
Progression: Can result in low self-esteem and fear of socializing
Causes: hereditary, pulls triggered by anxiety, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder
Medications: clomipramine may help; naltrexone and fluoxetine, also ; some medications increase hair-pulling
Therapies: CBT- habit-reversal training, biofeedback, hypnosis; electronic hand-tracking equipment may help, support groups

Youtube Video:

Overcoming Trichotillomania: The Power of Awareness

Amazon or Library Book: The Hair Pulling “Habit” and You

Click the book to link or order from Amazon.

Support Group: bfrb.org; 831-0457-1004

(Body Focused Repetitive Disorders)

4 CURRENT ARTICLES
FROM PUBMED

The world-wide medical research
reports chosen for each diagnosis 

Clicking each title opens the
PubMed article’s summary-abstract.

  • Borderline personality disorder in Trichotillomania and skin picking disorder: a survey study
    by Jon E Grant on December 19, 2024

    CONCLUSIONS: These data suggest relatively high rates of borderline personality disorder in people with BFRBs, in turn linked to more severe psychopathology and elevated lifetime suicide attempt risk. Perhaps the comorbidity with borderline personality disorder reflects a possible subtype of these behaviors that is more impulsive and may necessitate different treatment approaches.

  • Rapunzel syndrome leading to acute intestinal obstruction in a teenager: A rare case report
    by Ahmad Ismail on December 19, 2024

    CONCLUSION: Psychosocial stressors, trichotillomania, and trichophagia often go unnoticed in teenagers resulting in drastic consequences. A multidisciplinary approach is required to diagnose and manage gastrointestinal obstruction secondary to Rapunzel Syndrome.

  • Rapunzel Syndrome: Clinical, Diagnostic and Forensic Aspects in Related Deaths-A Review of the Literature
    by Matteo Antonio Sacco on December 17, 2024

    Background: Rapunzel syndrome is a rare and severe form of trichobezoar, characterized by the presence of hair masses in the stomach that often extend into the bowel, resembling the legendary "Rapunzel's" long hair. Methods: This review examines the clinical, diagnostic, forensic, and post-mortem aspects associated with Rapunzel syndrome, with a focus on cases resulting in mortality or those at high risk of death due to complications. In particular, the review systematically analyzes the...

  • Trichotillomania in a Male Patient With Depression: A Case Report
    by Konstantinos Kontoangelos on December 11, 2024

    Trichotillomania is a disorder of chronic hair pulling classified as an impulse control disorder that causes essential stress and leads to difficulties in functionality and severe alopecia. This is the case of a 43-year-old male without a serious medical history who was hospitalized with a large ulcerated plaque with smooth margins covering almost the entire occipital area. He received antibiotic and antidepressant treatment, after which he appeared to be improving. Psychotherapy with behavioral...