Chennai: City-based Apollo Hospitals today announced the successful separation of a pair of conjoined twins from Tanzania in a surgery that took a marathon 11 hours and required the expertise of around 50 professionals.
Twins Abriana and Adriana were joined at their lower chest and abdomen, a medical condition described as 'Thoraco Omphalopagus,' and were separated after meticulous planning and execution involving different departments, Paediartic Urologist and the team leader who supervised the surgical procedure, Dr Venkata Sripathi, said.
"It took seven and a half hours for the surgery and another two and a half hours for closure by plastic experts," he told a press conference here.
The surgery involved separation of the pericardium (heart lining), diaphragm and the connected livers, a hospital statement said, adding "conjoined births are rare-- one in 50,000 to one in one lakh. However, more than 35 per cent die after birth," it added.
Incidentally, Adriana developed some complications after surgery and another procedure was carried on her, details of which were constantly shared between doctors on mobile phone messaging platform, 'Whatsapp,' Dr Suchitra Ranjit from the Pediatric Intensive Care said.
"Adriana's heart had to be covered with bovine pericardium and carefully closed with skin and soft tissue," said Dr K S Sivakumar, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon.
Chairman and Founder of Apollo Hospitals Enterprises Ltd, Dr Prathap C Reddy, lauded the doctors for their feat and said that Indian health care offered medical treatment for such critical issues at affordable costs than many other countries.
After being admitted in August this year, Abriana and Adriana underwent the final separation surgery on November 11, 2014, doctors said. They were born to Jimmy Mtemi and Carolyn Zakaria.
