The other twin, Zainab, appears to be in stable condition and is responsive to hospital staff and her father.
Health Minister Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah, who headed the surgical team, said Ruqiya suffered from a deformity on her head that made breathing difficult. The minister explained that the death was not due to any surgical complications. “It (the death) was solely due to Ruqiya’s unstable condition,” said Al-Rabeeah.
Born on June 5 in Najaf, Iraq, the twins, who were joined at the hips and the heads, were brought to Riyadh on June 25 under Saudi Arabia’s ongoing humanitarian policy of performing conjoined-twin separation surgeries at no cost to the parents. The policy is a directive from Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah.
The twins underwent emergency separation surgery on July 16 after a series of clinical tests conducted by the paramedical team headed by Al-Rabeeah revealed that their condition was critical.
“The case of the twins is rare and complicated,” the minister had said after the tests. He had pointed out that Ruqiya’s survival would be difficult because of the deformity in her head.
Ruqiya and Zainab were transferred from the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit to the Pediatric Ward on July 25, nine days after separation.
Zainab was recently removed from her artificial respirator and has been breathing and bottle-feeding on her own. She has been responsive to her father as well as to the medical staff.
