An operation to separate conjoined twins connected together from theupper thorax to the lower belly was reported to be a success on November26 after a more-than-eight-hour surgery at Paediatric Hospital 2 in HoChi Minh City.
The twins Nguyen Hoang Phi Long andNguyen Hoang Phi Phung were born 14 months ago to a poor family incentral Ninh Thuan province and had undergone a special treatmentprocess at the hospital before the surgery.
PhD. DrTruong Quang Dinh, the hospital's deputy director, said one of the twinswas in good health condition and the other was suffering after-birthcerebral haemorrhage and pneumonia with respirator support.
Doctors decided to separate the twins because any deterioration of theweaker baby can threaten the lives of the two, Dinh said.
In order to make the surgery a success, doctors at the hospital heldconsultations with health experts from the Trauma and OrthopedicsHospital and the Ho Chi Minh City Heart Institute. They discussed howthe surgery would be conducted and anticipated problems that might occurduring the process as well as how to deal with them effectively shouldthey arise.
“As one of the boys is on a respirator,doctors faced difficulties in anaesthetising them. The intravenousinfusion is also a problem since the twins have received manyintravenous infusions during their stay in hospital before the surgery,”Dinh said.
He also said surgeons faced difficultiesin separating the heart as it was conjoined in a complicated way. Theseparation of their liver was carried out very carefully as it containedabnormal blood vessels.
After the surgery, Phunghad an open area from his breastbone to above his navel at a length of12cm, so doctors covered it with a film made of biological materials andgradually closed his abdominal walls using a specific device. Thebiological film was made available by Pediatrics Hospital II a fewmonths before the operation.
“We anticipated thatafter the surgery, Long would have his chest area closed at once, whilePhung must rely on biological materials to cover his open area as aresult of the separation,” said PhD. Dr Mai Trong Tuong, head of theMicro-Surgery and Plastic Surgery Department at the Trauma andOrthopedics Hospital.
After the successfuloperation, the babies were still going through a critical recoveryprocess, and one of them was struggling because of a heart defect,according to Dr Dinh.
Hospital staff were workinghard to help the babies overcome the procedure, he added. The cost ofthe operation was covered by donations.
In December2012 Ho Chi Minh City, Children Hospital 2 doctors successfullyseparated twins joined at the abdomen and chest. The twins are the firstchildren of a 23-year-old woman from central Ha Tinh province.-VNA
The twins Nguyen Hoang Phi Long andNguyen Hoang Phi Phung were born 14 months ago to a poor family incentral Ninh Thuan province and had undergone a special treatmentprocess at the hospital before the surgery.
PhD. DrTruong Quang Dinh, the hospital's deputy director, said one of the twinswas in good health condition and the other was suffering after-birthcerebral haemorrhage and pneumonia with respirator support.
Doctors decided to separate the twins because any deterioration of theweaker baby can threaten the lives of the two, Dinh said.
In order to make the surgery a success, doctors at the hospital heldconsultations with health experts from the Trauma and OrthopedicsHospital and the Ho Chi Minh City Heart Institute. They discussed howthe surgery would be conducted and anticipated problems that might occurduring the process as well as how to deal with them effectively shouldthey arise.
“As one of the boys is on a respirator,doctors faced difficulties in anaesthetising them. The intravenousinfusion is also a problem since the twins have received manyintravenous infusions during their stay in hospital before the surgery,”Dinh said.
He also said surgeons faced difficultiesin separating the heart as it was conjoined in a complicated way. Theseparation of their liver was carried out very carefully as it containedabnormal blood vessels.
After the surgery, Phunghad an open area from his breastbone to above his navel at a length of12cm, so doctors covered it with a film made of biological materials andgradually closed his abdominal walls using a specific device. Thebiological film was made available by Pediatrics Hospital II a fewmonths before the operation.
“We anticipated thatafter the surgery, Long would have his chest area closed at once, whilePhung must rely on biological materials to cover his open area as aresult of the separation,” said PhD. Dr Mai Trong Tuong, head of theMicro-Surgery and Plastic Surgery Department at the Trauma andOrthopedics Hospital.
After the successfuloperation, the babies were still going through a critical recoveryprocess, and one of them was struggling because of a heart defect,according to Dr Dinh.
Hospital staff were workinghard to help the babies overcome the procedure, he added. The cost ofthe operation was covered by donations.
In December2012 Ho Chi Minh City, Children Hospital 2 doctors successfullyseparated twins joined at the abdomen and chest. The twins are the firstchildren of a 23-year-old woman from central Ha Tinh province.-VNA
