Conjoined Twins Separated in Chile Following 20 Hour Operation
Over 100 doctors in Santiago, Chile, have worked for 20 hours and have successfully separated conjoined twins Maria Paz and Maria Jose.
The girls were born to Jessica Navarrete and Roberto Paredes and have already had seven operations to help with the separation, according to The Associated Press. This latest surgery completely separated them, though the girls face more procedures to ensure they remain healthy.
The surgery took place at Luis Calvo Mackenna Hospital in Santiago, Chile, with Dr. Francisco Ossandon overseeing the procedure. He was pleased with the girls’ outcome and told the AP, “The girls finished the process of being born. Before, they had two souls and one body.”
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Right now the girls are in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) under sedation; they will remain in the ICU until doctors are certain they are stable enough to be moved. The largest threat to the girl’s survival is infection. Because their bodies were separated, organs were divided and each body now has to adjust to its new structure, according to the report.
Dr. Ossandon explained that, “These are foreign bodies that sometimes the body recognizes as foreign, and that can cause infection.”
The hospital has more experience than most at separating conjoined twins. To date, it has successfully separated three sets of twins who are now living and thriving. Unfortunately, one set did not survive the surgery due to cardiac complications, according to the report.
The University of Maryland Medical Center states that the odds of having conjoined twins are one in 200,000, with an overall survival rate between 5 and 25 percent. The Center also said, “For some reason, female siblings seem to have a better shot at survival than their male counterparts."
“Although more male twins conjoin in the womb than female twins, females are three times as likely as males to be born alive. Approximately 70 percent of all conjoined twins are girls,” according to the report.
Conjoined twins are not new; one report by the Center has them dating back to 1100. These twins, also female, lived until they were 34-years-old.
