Trichotillomania

Pathological hair pulling that results in noticeable hair loss. As in other impulse-control disorders, an increasing sense of tension or affective arousal immediately precedes an episode of hair pulling, which is then followed by a sense of pleasure, gratification, or relief.

Compulsion to pull out one’s hair; an impulse disorder.

The twirling or plucking at segments of hair resulting in trauma to the hair follicles causing patches of baldness.

A condition in-which a person pulls his or her hair out compulsively.

Trichotillomania is an impulse disorder characterized by recurrent pulling of hair. Sufferers can pull hair from any part of the body, including the scalp, eyebrows, eyelashes, and pubic region. However, in children, the most common areas affected are the scalp and eyelash-eyebrow areas.

Loss of hair caused by a person persistently and neurotically rubbing or pulling it.

An obsessional impulse to pull out one’s own hair.

The unnatural and irresistible urge to pull out one’s own hair. Clomipramine has been effective in treating this condition.

A condition characterized by recurrent episodes of pulling and tugging on one’s own hair, typically leading to noticeable hair loss on the scalp or other parts of the body.

The persistent action of repetitively extracting one’s own hair characterizes trichotillomania. This behavior can be linked to profound mental disabilities or psychotic disorders. Trichotillomania might also manifest in children with psychological disturbances. Those afflicted with trichotillomania tend to pull, manipulate, and snap off sections of hair from their scalp, resulting in noticeable bald areas. On occasion, the act extends to removing pubic hair in place of or alongside head hair.

On occasion, children ingest the extracted hair, potentially leading to the accumulation of a hairball in the stomach, medically referred to as a trichobezoar.