Odisha Woman Gives Birth to Conjoined Girl Twins

An Odisha resident gave birth to conjoined girl twins, who share a single heart and a liver, and there is a suspicion that the heart is not functioning properly

Births of conjoined twins, whose skin and internal organs are fused together, are rare. Approximately 40 to 60 percent of conjoined twins arrive stillborn, and about 35 percent survive only one day. An Odisha resident last week gave birth to conjoined girl twins, who share a single heart and a liver.

For some reason, female siblings seem to have a better shot at survival than their male counterparts. The two girls -- Ganga and Jamuna -- were born on Friday evening in a private nursing home in Nayagarh district, and have since been admitted into Sishu Bhawan in Cuttack. They are joined at the abdomen.

Conjoined Twins Underwent an 18-Hour Surgery for Separation
After 18 hours of surgery, the heads of the conjoined twins from Odisha have been separated successfully. The health condition of the children is stable.

‘The two girls -- Ganga and Jamuna joined at the abdomen -- were born on Friday evening in a private nursing home in Nayagarh district. The overall survival rate of conjoined twins is somewhere between 5 percent and 25 percent.’

The twins, who are conjoined at their stomach, were born in Khalipatana village in Sarankula police station area. The state government has already announced to bear medical expenses on the twins.

"As per a CT (computed tomography) scan report, the twins share one heart and one liver. There is a strong suspicion that the heart is not functioning properly," Sishu Bhavan’s Paediatrics Department head Saroj Kumar Satpathy said.

He said an operation to separate the conjoined twins at present would be risky.

Phase II Surgery of Conjoined Twins Begins at AIIMS
The second phase surgery has began by 30 specialized doctors to separate the conjoined twins Jaga and Kalia of Odisha at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).

"Further tests will be conducted, given the case’s complexity. Under the present circumstances, chances of operating on them to separate them are less and it will be risky. A team of doctors observing them will take a call on the operation after a couple of months," Satpathy said.

The Odisha government had borne medical expenses on craniopagus twins Jaga and Kalia -- joined at the head -- from Kandhamal district, who are undergoing treatment at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi after their separation through surgery.

Swiss Doctors Make History by Separating Eight-Day-Old Conjoined Twins
A medical team of 13 performed the risky five-hour operation at Inselspital Hospital in Bern in December, with only a one percent chance of success.

They were separated on October 25, after a marathon surgery that lasted for over 11 hours.

Source-IANS

Birth of Conjoined Twins Turns Into a Nightmare for 25-Year-Old Woman
Devi and her husband, a laborer, were too poor to have an ultrasound check during the pregnancy and didn’t know that the babies were conjoined until delivery.