Doctors remove giant hairball from 12-year-old's stomach in Kazakhstan

In a horrifying incident, doctors removed a baby-size hairball from the stomach of a twelve-year-old girl.

The 3.5kg hairball was pulled from the schoolgirl's guts at Mangystau Regional Children's Hospital in Kazakhstan.

Footage from the operation show medics pulling the huge hairball from the stomach with a giant pair of medical forceps.

The unnamed girl was recently hospitalised with extreme stomach pains that had got progressively worse over the last two years.

When questioned at the hospital, they admitted she had a lifelong habit of chewing her own hair.

The massive ball - which measured 35 by 15 centimetres - filled almost all of her stomach, leaving no room for food.

She frequently suffered from nausea and remained skinny - regardless of what she ate.

Speaking about the incident, head of surgery Sultanbek Tumashev said, "Due to her low protein level and swollen legs, doctors needed two days to prepare the girl for surgery."

The surgery was performed under general anaesthetic and the girl’s stomach and intestines were cleaned during the surgery - with doctors optimistic about her recovery as she has already been discharged.