Combing hair is a part of everyone’s daily routine, but for a Scottish schoolgirl, who suffers from an extremely rare medical condition, it could mean life or death.
Megan Stewart, 13, suffers from Hair Brushing Syndrome and has been given a dire warning that she could die by simply brushing her hair.
Doctors at Yorkhill Hospital for Sick Children in Glasgow, told her parents they had only ever heard of one other case of the syndrome which forces the youngster to avoid any kind of static as it triggers a potentially fatal reaction.
The extremely rare medical condition, which causes dizziness and can trigger a seizure, was only discovered by her mother Sharon as she was getting her daughter ready for her first day at primary six.
“I was brushing her hair in the living room when she flopped over and her lips turned blue,” the Daily Mail quoted Sharon as saying.
“I thought she was having a fit, which she has never had before, so we called the paramedics.
“It was really scary. We were really shocked because we didn’t know what was happening,” the 41-year-old stated.
Now, the teenager, from Wishaw, Lanarkshire has to have her hair brushed downwards over the side of her bed while it is damp so she can avoid another seizure.
It is thought the little-known illness may be a result of her birth complications.
Megan was born weighing just 2lb 5oz and fit in the palm of a man’s hand. She had a diaphragmatic hernia, or a hole in her diaphragm.
This meant her stomach moved right up through and into her chest, only allowing space for one lung to grow.
But the bizarre condition means Megan now has to avoid static charges in her day-to-day life.
“When we comb her hair we have to lay her down and cover her head with water to stop any static building up,” her mom said.
“She can’t rub balloons on her head at parties,” she added.