RIYADH, 28 November 2006 — The conjoined Iraqi twins who were brought to the Kingdom’s National Guard Hospital in King Abdul Aziz Medical City will undergo separation surgery on Saturday.
The twins, weighing 3.2 kg, were brought here when they were 11 days old. Soon after arrival they developed a urinary tract infection that necessitated their transfer to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit.
“As a result of specialized treatment, their weight has increased to 11.5 kg and they are stable and ready for surgery,” Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah, chief executive officer of the National Guard Health Affairs and chief surgeon at King Abdul Aziz Medical City, announced yesterday.
He added that this would be the 12th separation surgery performed at the hospital on instructions from Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah.
Born on Jan. 25, the twins, Fatima and Zahra, came to the Kingdom with their father, Haider, their mother, Majda, and their year-and-a-half-old brother.
An Iraqi pediatrician was also accompanying the party.
Dr. Rabeeah explained that the twins are joined at the chest, abdomen and pelvis. “Each one has one lower extremity and both share a rudimentary third lower extremity. They also share one liver, colon, anus and urinary and genital system. The conjoined surface area is large and because of the small size of the shared lower extremity, we decided to use tissue expander which was surgically inserted three months ago to stretch the skin in order to help cover the cavity which will be created after separation,” he said.
The separation, performed in 10 phases, will be carried out by a 29-member surgical team headed by Dr. Rabeeah. The surgery is expected to last about 20 hours.
Haider, father of the twins, said: “I am thankful to King Abdullah for his magnanimity in making all these arrangements. Pray for the success of my children’s surgery so that we can go home happily.”
