The doctors of a Hospital in
New Delhi, India, declared on
September 4, 2013, Wednesday
that a pair of formerly
conjoined twins, born in
Nigeria, were healthy and
happy after they were
successfully separated in a
marathon "nerve-wracking"
operation in India by a team of
40 specialists.
The one-year-old girls, sporting
matching bright pink dresses,
sat patiently on their parents'
laps as doctors explained
"They were fused at their back
when they came to us which is
very rare," paediatric surgeon
Prashant Jain said.
"Usually the twins are joined in
the head or the upper body. It
posed a huge challenge to our
team of doctors," children's'
surgeon added.
The separation took place last
month and lasted for 18-hours.
In the picture, Badaru Mannir (L)
holds his daughter Hassana
Badaru (2L) while Hussaina
Badaru (R) is held by her
mother.
The girls, Hussaina and Hassana
sat happily, grabbing at a
mobile phone, clutching a rattle
and trying to pull off their
mother's earrings.
The mother of the twins, Mrs.
Malama Badariyya Badaru, said
she was incredibly happy at
finally being able to hold the
girls in her arms "individually".
"It was all nerve-wracking
work. But it feels great to see
them happy, healthy and
independent," Jain said.
The single surgery was carried
out in three stages, preparation,
separation and then
reconstruction of their shared
organs which include the lower
spine, lower intestinal and
urinary tracts as well as
genitals.
"We carried out rehearsals using
dummies. All tubes, wires,
injections and drugs were
colour-coded in pink or blue
(for each girl) to avoid any
mistake," he said.
Jain said only 15 percent of all
conjoined twins are born with
this type of condition, known
medically as pygopagus. Medical
literature lists just 32 such
cases, he said.
It would be recalled that Kano-
based Badaru family were
seeking N600,000 for
separation surgery . It is truly
fantastic that they found the
money, and the operation went
well.
The family can head home to
Nigeria after a series of month-
long check ups, the surgeon
said.
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