Conjoined twin girls from Nigeria
have been separated after a lengthy operation at a Tennessee hospital,
days ahead of their first birthday.
Miracle
and Testimony Ayeni were separated during 18 hours of surgery that
began on Nov. 7 and finished Nov. 8 at Le Bonheur Children's Hospital in
Memphis, the hospital said.
The twins were joined together at the
pelvis, a condition that only occurs in one of about every 5 million
births, said Dr. Max Langham, who led the surgical team.
"Without
separation, their future wasn't very good," Langham said at a news
conference Tuesday. "They would grow up incontinent, unable to walk,
totally dependent for all of their care and unable to participate in the
world fully."
Doctors are optimistic about the
long-term prognosis and hospital spokeswoman Anne Glanker told The
Associated Press that both girls are "doing really well."
The
twins have been in the hospital since their parents brought them from
Nigeria in June to prepare for the procedure. The twins face additional
surgeries and rehabilitation and it's not clear when they might return
home.
The family has another reason to celebrate — Wednesday was the twins' first birthday.
This
is the second time a set of conjoined twins have been separated at Le
Bonheur. Twin boys who were joined at the back and pelvis were separated
in 2011.
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