Two conjoined sisters were living separate lives last night for the
first time since they were born 11 months ago thanks to 13 hours of highly
complicated surgery at Fudan University's Children's Hospital.
"The twins' deformity was very rare, and theirs was the first separation
surgery of its kind in the world," said Gui Yonghao, president of the Shanghai
hospital. "It would have been a miracle for one child to survive and a challenge
to the limits of medicine for both to survive. We made it."
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Doctors and nurses escort 11-monthold Chen
Jingni to an intensive care unit yesterday after a 13-hour procedure
separated her from her twin sister, Hu Jingxuan, at Fudan University's
Children's Hospital. [Shanghai Daily]
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The infants are far from out of the woods yet. Both have congenital heart
conditions and will require additional followup surgeries.
Chen Jingni, the stronger of the two, was taken to the hospital's intensive
care unit after the separation procedure. Her sister, Hu Jingxuan, remained in
the operating room last night because of her more serious heart condition. She
won't be moved the three floors to the ICU until her condition stabilizes.
"I'm extremely happy that the surgery was successful; I've dreamed of holding
them separately for a long time," said mother Chen Yanfen, who, like her
husband, is a farmer from Taizhou in Zhejiang Province.
In deciding to schedule the surgery for yesterday, doctors had to balance the
risk of the traumatic procedure against the harm that could come from delay, as
the girls' hearts were weakening.
"We discussed medical ethics before the surgery, assessing the condition of
the patients, the operation's risk and the family's opinion," said Xu Hong, a
hospital official. "Since the twins were in critical condition and their heart
function was fading, we decided to conduct the surgery after receiving the
family's agreement."
To ensure the success of the operation, the hospital halted all elective
procedures yesterday, putting its entire staff of experts on standby.
At 8 a.m., a team of 27 doctors, seven anesthesiologists and eight nurses
began the delicate procedure to decouple the girls, joined from the upper chest
to the lower pelvis.
Surgeons had to separate the infants at the bladder, uterus, pelvis,
intestines, liver and the sac that covers the heart.
The girls were finally freed from each other at 5:20pm, and surgeons began
the task of repairing their tissues.
"Though they are now in stable condition, the twins still face potentially
fatal challenges such as organ failure, infection, blood disorders and
nutritional problems," Gui said.
Doctors estimated the cost of the surgery at 160,000 yuan (US$20,016). The
Taizhou Commercial Association has agreed to donate 260,000 yuan for medical
expenses and sent in 160,000 yuan yesterday.
