A set of 14-month old conjoined twins have become the first to be successfully separated in Michigan. Sarabeth and Amelia Irwin were born connected from their chests to their bellies with their arms wrapped around each other. They’ve beaten the odds - as many as 60% of conjoined twins don’t survive delivery and even fewer live long enough to come home from the hospital.
On August 5th, two teams of doctors - one for each twin - performed an 11-hour surgery to separate them and everything went well.
Now the girls are “doing great,” according to their mom, Allison, and while they may have to have more surgeries as they grow, doctors are optimistic they’ll grow up to be just like other kids. “Their outlook is really quite good, especially with their parents,” explains pediatric surgeon George Mychaliska. “Not only because of their commitment, love and support, but because they're just very innovative and optimistic people. I think that really made a big difference."
Source: Detroit Free Press
Photo: Getty Images