Conjoined Twins With A Shared Heart Successfully Separated

In a path-breaking intervention, doctors successfully separated conjoined twins who shared a common heart.

This is considered the region’s first thoracopagus separation surgery’ for conjoined twins.

(Photo: iStockphoto)

In a path-breaking medical intervention, a team of doctors at Narayana Health City, Bengaluru, saved the life of newborn baby Cleanne Papillion, by performing PDA stenting along with the region’s first ‘thoracopagus separation surgery’ for conjoined twins on him.

In a press release, the hospital announced that it successfully separated the twins who were joined from the neck to the upper abdomen. To add to the complication, they even had a joint heart.

Baby Cleanne Papillon is perhaps the 3rd Miracle baby in the world with a shared heart, to have been successfully saved through Thoraco-pagus twins separation surgery.

The babies are from Mauritius, where the health department searched for options abroad to get them treated. However, as per the report, many European and Asian countries were not open to consider the case because the ‘negligible chances for survival’.

Post operative picture of the baby.(Photo Courtesy: Narayana Health City)

Dr. Ashley D’ Cruz, Director and Senior Consultant Pediatric Surgeon and Urologist said,

The survival rate in conjoined twins are minimal. In fact, the survival ratio of siamese twins with fused heart is even low. The child is the ‘3rd Miracle Baby’ in the world who has survived a thoracopagus separation surgery.