A group of surgeons recently separated three-day-old conjoined twins — which by itself is a huge feat.
But what makes the procedure even more amazing?
The parents of the newborns were not able to afford the procedure and were gifted the surgery free of cost.
When twins are conjoined at birth, both share certain organs or body parts inside as well as outside the skin. Usually, according to Verywell Health, they are identical twins –which means they will be the same sex. But it said that conjoined twins are very rare and considered to be about 1 in 50,000 to 100,000 twins worldwide.
The team who is based in India took a selfie immediately after the procedure to celebrate.
The two little girls, who are not yet named, were conjoined at the stomach and both cumulatively weighed 7 lbs.
Verywell Health also reports that female twins are more likely to be conjoined symmetrical twins. And while doctors are not sure why, female conjoined twins are more likely to have a higher change of surviving than male conjoined twins. The site also shares how if both twins survive, they are at risk for multiple health complications and problems.
The procedure took place on December 6th and took five-hours to complete. Doctors separated the babies breastbones and livers after anesthetizing both infants at the same time.
As you can imagine, the babies’ parents were very anxious about the risky procedure but the S.S. Hospital group in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India, encouraged the duo that it was the best thing for the infants.
And after discovering that the parents were not able to pay for the invasive surgery, the surgeons decided collectively to do the procedure at no cost.
Assistant professor of pediatric surgery, Dr. Vaibhav Pandey shared: “It was one of the rarest operations our hospital does.”
“I am very happy that both survived in spite of the long operation and the children being weak. It was a challenging task.”
And it makes perfect sense why the team decided to capture the moment with a celebratory selfie.
It took five surgeons, 10 doctors and 15 nurses to complete the complex procedure.
Before the operation, both babies were dehydrated. They are due to be discharged later in the week. While the hospital reported they each are doing well, when they return home — they will finally be named in a traditional ritual.
And while their survival is something to celebrate, as the girls were born in December — their birth month makes them that more special.
According to the Journal of Ageing Research in a published study it was discovered that a baby born in December is slated to live an exceptionally long life.
It was found in another study according to the Washington Post that 1,749,400 people from the United States are also considered ‘December babies’ and are not as likely to suffer from cardiovascular disease.
While in a US college student survey, those who were born in December were less likely to moan. They also were more likely to be athletic, according to a study in the International Journal of Sports Science.
Yay for December babies!
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