Nearly a year after a set of conjoined twins were born to a 26-year old mother at Parel-based Nowrosjee Wadia Maternity Hospital on September 19, 2016, doctors separated them on December 12, with a series of complex surgeries.
In what doctors call an extremely rare birth – one in over five lakh – the twins, Love and Prince also had a common liver, urinary bladder, intestines and fused pelvic bones. They had to be operated very carefully as we feared that they may suffer heavy bleeding or their blood pressure may dropp,” said Dr Pradnya Bendre, head of paediatric surgery, Wadia Hospital, who led the team of 30 doctors monitoring the children in the hospital’s intensive care unit.
“The surgery lasted for 12 hours. Giving anesthesia to children is always challenging, as one has to be very accurate with the dose,” she added. Doctors said the children are now in a stable condition. Their mother, Sheetal Zalte, said she learnt about the their condition during the fifth month of her pregnancy, when she was visiting her parents.