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This Disturbing Condition Is Something Both New And Seasoned Parents Need To Be Aware Of

"Symptoms may be nothing initially, but subsequently manifest as excessive crying and fussiness in a baby."

I was recently scrolling my TikTok FYP when I came across a video of woman who found a strand of hair wrapped around her baby's finger.

Baby lying on back, sucking thumb, wearing a onesie, looking thoughtfully
Halfpoint Images / Getty Images

Thankfully, the woman in the video was able to get the hair off with her fingers and the baby was totally fine. Still, I couldn't help but wonder how bad a situation like this could get. A baby obviously can't speak, so how are they supposed to let you know if there's a hair strangling one of their little digits? And what should you do if you can't get the hair off with your fingers?

Woman in a spaghetti strap dress sits at a laptop, text overlay reads a pondering phrase
HBO

I did what any newb would do, and Googled "hair wrapped around baby's toe." Immediately, hair tourniquet syndrome popped up. WebMD describes it as "when a strand of hair or thread wraps tightly around a body part such as the fingers, toes, or genitals. It’s a relatively rare condition that’s more common in babies and toddlers. If left untreated, hair tourniquet syndrome can cause pain, long-term injury, and loss of function in the affected body part." Here's a photo of what it looks like when it's affecting a baby's toe:

Close-up of a baby's toe resting on a white surface, toes gently curled. There is a hair tightly wrapped around one toe that is red.
James Heilman, MD / Via Wikipedia