What is "trichotillomania"

1905, from French trichotillomanie (1889), from tricho-, Latinized form of Greek trikho-, comb. form of thrix (genitive trikhos) "hair" + Greek tillesthai "to pull out" + mania.\n

n. a medical disorder in which the patient compulsively pulls his/her own hair out.

n. an irresistible urge to pull out your own hair

Trichotillomania ( , also known as trichotillosis or hair pulling disorder) is an impulse control disorder, characterised by the compulsive urge to pull out one's hair, which (depending on where the hair is pulled from) leads to hair loss balding and distress, and often social or functional impairment. It appears in the ICD chapter 5 on mental and behavioural disorders, and is often chronic and difficult to treat.

Trichotillomania may be present in infants, but the peak age of onset is 9 to 13. It may be triggered by depression or stress. Owing to social implications, the disorder is often unreported and it is difficult to accurately predict its prevalence; the lifetime prevalence is estimated to be between 0.6% and 4.0% of the overall population. Common areas for hair to be pulled out are the scalp, eyelashes, eyebrows, legs, arms, hands, nose and the pubic areas.

The name, coined by French dermatologist François Henri Hallopeau, derives from the Greek: θρίξ/τριχ- thrix/trich- ("hair"), τίλλειν tíllein ("to pull"), and μανία mania ("madness, frenzy").