>>> PM congratulates HCM City's doctors for successful separation of conjoined twins
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After 12 hours of separation surgery carried out at the Ho Chi Minh City Children’s Hospital that mobilised nearly 100 leading medical workers in the city, Vietnam has recorded yet another miracle – a feat named ‘life’. Truc Nhi and Dieu Nhi now turn to a bright new chapter in their lives.
As one of nine key physicians offering consulting services for the surgical team, Professor, Dr. Tran Dong A, a senior specialist and professional advisor at the National Children's Hospital 2 in Ho Chi Minh City, concluded that the surgery to separate the twins had "proceeded as expected".
32 years ago, Professor Dong A was the coordinator, commander and chief surgeon for an operation to separate Vietnamese twin boys Nguyen Viet and Nguyen Duc (born in 1981) who were conjoined at the pelvic abdomen. The medical success 32 years ago is still imprinted in the mind of the leading professor who recently turned 79 years old.
Truc Nhi and Dieu Nhi now turn to a bright, new chapter in their lives.
He said that 32 years ago, the medical capacity in Vietnam and around the world was very different compared with that of today. The only similarity between these two twins is the pelvic abdomen being stuck together. However, Truc Nhi - Dieu Nhi still possess all four symmetrical legs, while Viet - Duc had only three crossed legs.
“In the case of the twin boys, Viet suffered from cerebral palsy. In the history of world medicine, no one had ever performed surgery on a child with cerebral palsy for more than ten hours,” Professor Dong A said.
The twins’ particular phenomenon only accounts for 6% amongst all conjoined twins worldwide.
At that time, the world had only six conjoined twins like Viet - Duc. Among them, there were two pairs living, two pairs had died and two twins had only one survivor. In particular, there has been no case involving cerebral palsy like that of Viet - Duc. Vietnamese doctors at that time overcame the difficulties caused by trade embargoes in order to become the first country to conduct such a complicated separation surgery.
“When carrying out the surgery on Viet - Duc, the twins were eight years old and their cartilage had stuck together into bones, causing much blood loss during the operation. In the case of Truc Nhi - Dieu Nhi, the babies had surgery at 12 months, the right age for surgery according to world medicine. The twins are in good health to overcome this major surgery,” Professor Dong A said.
Journey to giving "birth" again for Truc Nhi - Dieu Nhi
Prof. Dong A was a professional consultant on this special operation since the first days the two babies were born. From May 6, 2019 up until now, he attended all consultations and presented his options as well as risk preventive plans for each phase of the surgery.
According to the professor, the conjoined phenomenon of the two baby sisters, being at their pelvic abdomen, only accounts for 6% amongst all conjoined twins (1 per 200,000 live births) worldwide. Thanks to today’s modern equipment, the success rate for the surgery is very high, often over 70% if no complications occur. "We had to discuss the situation where if there are unforeseen circumstances, doctors will know what to do in the hope of being able to save both babies," Professor Dong A said.
Doctors persisted through over 12 hours in the intense surgery.
At about 6 am on July 15, Truc Nhi - Dieu Nhi entered the surgery with the first stage being anesthesia. At about 10 am, the surgical team made the first incision. At 2:07 pm, the conjoined twins were completely separated. Each baby was taken to a separate operating room to deal with pelvic orthopaedic surgery and other operations. At 7 pm the same day, the surgery was announced as a great success as expected. The two babies were transferred to the recovery room in stable health.
Director of Ho Chi Minh City Children's Hospital, Dr. Truong Quang Dinh, said that this is a rare case, with a relatively low success rate in world medical records. After multiple consultations, doctors asked the parent’s permission to give birth to Truc Nhi - Dieu Nhi once again. "Our wish is to return them to a healthy life like any other child," said Dr. Dinh.
The journey to ‘sow’ new life for the twins has initially grasped success.
He shared more information on the twins, who were born with an conjoined shape, relying on each other as multiple common internal organs were shared by both individuals. Truc Nhi and Dieu Nhi have been with the hospital since they were in their mother's womb. At that time, doctors at the Ho Chi Minh City Children's Hospital had envisioned the complicated conjoined state of the two babies, but their parents were determined to nurture them until the day they were given birth.
At that time, little Dieu Nhi was weak, but miraculously she was strong enough to overcome a turbulent journey during a premature birth infancy. Dr. Dinh believed that, with that tenacity, both would overcome the major surgery.
As expected, the operation was successful after 12 tense hours. At about 7 pm on July 15, the surgery ended with the final stage of separating the twins and reforming their organs being successful. All present burst into tears of happiness.
Present during the whole surgery, the parents of the twins blushed and choked: “When I learnt that my babies were separated, I was happy but I did not know how to describe that joy. It was the moment my family had been awaiting for so long. When they were apart, their health was still good. My family was very reassured”.
The twins’ parents burst into tears of happiness knowing that their babies have had a successful separation surgery.
According to Professor Tran Dong A, no surgeon is as happy as a paediatric surgeon, because saving a baby with a serious illness is like saving an entire lifetime.
The journey to help Truc Nhi - Dieu Nhi is still very long, especially the period of resuscitation ahead. However, with the spirit of determination to give birth to the twins once again, doctors at the Ho Chi Minh Children's Hospital will continue to accompany the babies through many important stages to help them enjoy the complete happiness everyone deserves.
