Surgeons make operation in Dhaka Medical College and Hospital to separate two sisters born pygopagus in Dhaka, capital of Bangladesh, on Aug. 1, 2017. Surgeons successfully separated two 9-month-old sisters born pygopagus in a complex operation in Bangladesh capital Dhaka on Tuesday. (Xinhua/Salim Reza)
by Naim-Ul-Karim
DHAKA, Aug. 1 (Xinhua) -- Surgeons successfully separated two 9-month-old sisters born pygopagus in a complex operation in Bangladesh capital Dhaka on Tuesday.
About eight hours into the surgery, Professor Ashraf Ul Huq, head of Pediatric Surgery Department at Dhaka Medical College and Hospital, told journalists at about 3:00 p.m. local time (0900 GMT) that "their operation is 90 percent done successfully."
The multi-hour operation processes of the twins, Tofa and Tohura, began Tuesday morning at about 7:00 a.m. local time (0100 GMT).
They were called pygopagus twins, a particularly rare form of conjoined twins, in which the bodies are joined back to back at the pelvis and lower spine.
Huq said the doctors have successfully separated them in the first half of the operation.
"Their spinal cord, backbone, urinary system and anus were separated successfully," he said.
Shortly after their separation, the infants were taken to two separate operation theaters to complete the rest of the tasks which will take a few more hours.
A team of specialists, which has been working for months to prepare for the surgery, took part in the operation. This has been the first time ever in the history of pediatric surgery in Bangladesh in which a pair of "Pygopagus" twins were separated, Huq said.
At least 16 surgeons from different Dhaka Medical College and Hospital departments including Anaesthesia, Burn and Plastic Surgery, Orthopedics, Neurosurgery, Urology, Radiology and Imaging took part in performing the operation, he added.
"We are very hopeful for a positive outcome finally as the second part of the operation completed surgery of critical part successfully."
The girls were connected on the hips and shared spinal columns and anus, he said, adding the twins will also likely undergo one or more additional surgeries.
The team of specialist Dhaka Medical College and Hospital doctors had earlier treated anal and rectal problems of the infants, Tofa and Tohura, who were born in Bangladesh's northern Gaibandha district, 268 km away from capital Dhaka.
Another pair of conjoined twins, Rabia and Rukaiya, also await a surgery in Dhaka. Rabia and Rukaiya were born joined at the head at a clinic in the country's Pabna district, 216 km west of Dhaka, in July last year.
They are undergoing treatment at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) in the capital, which also set up a team of specialists to treat them.
Prof. Ruhul Amin, chief pediatric surgeon at BSMMU, said surgeons and physicians have been formulating a comprehensive plan for their separation.
"We're yet to decide when they will undergo an operation to separate them," Amin said.
In January 2002, Bangladeshi doctors performed first-ever operation to separate conjoined twins who later died. Since then doctors here performed a number of separation operations of conjoined twins in the country. Some of them survived and are leading a healthy life.
