Conjoined Twin Surgery: One Lives, One Dies

Brett Singer — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 16:30:00 GMT

An operation to separate the one-week-old conjoined twins, named Hope and Faith, resulted in the Hope's death. Faith is still alive, with a "50-50 chance of survival," according to published reports.

The twins were born last week to Laura Williams. At 18, she is said to be the youngest woman ever to give birth to conjoined twins in Britain.

Listen to this: "The sisters were joined from the breastbone to the top of the navel. They shared their blood circulation but had their own organs, though they were joined at the liver and intestines." Can you imagine? I can, but not easily.

The doctors who performed the separation procedure wanted to wait but "the twins' health was deteriorating," which led to the emergency surgery.

So sad. I mean, what can you say? At least one of them survived? That's good news, right? Somehow it doesn't offset the sadness of the other half of the story. The fact that the twins' names are Hope and Faith got to me even more.

Source: AFP via Google

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British Teen Makes History with Siamese Twins

JeanneSager — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 16:31:00 GMT

A British teenager and her husband will make medical history this week, but all they're too frought with worry to celebrate. Laura Williams is just eighteen. When she delivers conjoined twins this week via a C-section, she'll be the youngest-ever woman in British history to give birth to Siamese twins.

Williams and husband Aled, twenty-eight, have been told their twins, already named Faith and Hope, may not survive past the two-week mark. Like most parents, survival for their children is all the Williams' have focused on since her twelve-week sonogram revealed the babies' rare condition. Tests have confirmed the girls have separate hearts, which alone greatly enhances their chances of survival. They've also revealed the babies are joined from the breastbone to the top of the navel, but little else. Whether the girls share any major organs - which will play a large role in doctors' moves immediately following birth - has yet to be determined.

Laura Williams has spent the last month in a hospital under constant monitoring, in part because doctors warned that carrying this pregnancy to term could prevent her from ever again having a child. She'll be transferred to a hospital in London this week for the birth. "It's scary every day and it's been the hardest decision of our lives, but if they're meant to be in this world and if they've come this far, we've got to hope they'll make it the rest of the way," she told London's Daily Mail.

To have the strength to go forward with a pregnancy that could not only result in losing your children within two weeks but also destroy your chances of ever again having another child is incredibly brave and highly personal. I can't find fault with the Williams' decision; I can only cross my fingers for them that their brush with medical history is also a medical miracle.

No matter the outcome, at the very least, they have Faith . . . and Hope.

Image: Buckles Family (another set of conjoined twins)

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