Abraham's ARENA: Boy, 4, has huge 4ft hairball removed by doctors in India after eating so much of his own hair he could only swallow

A four-year-old boy has had a 4ft hairball removed from his stomach by surgeons in India after eating so much of his own hair he could only swallow water.

Sivam Kumar had been swallowing his hair for nine months, would often vomit and was unable to eat normally which eventually led to malnutrition and dehydration.

When he first went to hospital doctors claimed he had a stomach infection and sent him away with medication but the toddler's stomach then became so bloated that it was protruding abnormally.

His father, Sunil Kumar, 36, said: 'He used to cry all the time but he couldn't explain to us what was wrong. We took him to many doctors but they found nothing.

'When a CT scan eventually revealed a big hairball I was shocked. I just couldn't believe it.'

When Sivan began complaining of pains a few months ago Sunil and his wife Munni Devi, 28, took their son to doctors near their home in Delhi.

After realising the cause of his discomfort couldn't possibly be a stomach infection, doctors examined him more thoroughly.

Eventually Dr Shilpa Sharma, an assistant professor of the pediatric department, at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences hospital, in New Delhi, found his stomach was clogged with hair.

After an hour-long surgery on February 4, doctors retrieved a gigantic 4ft hairball that filled his stomach as well as his small and large intestines.