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CNN Live At Daybreak
29-Year-Old Iranian Twins Joined at Head in Surgery
Aired July 07, 2003 - 05:38 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KRIS OSBORN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, 29-year-old Iranian twins joined at the head have been in surgery for more than a day now. An international team of doctors, neurosurgeons in Singapore is conducting a delicate marathon operation that could separate the women and allow the sisters to live individual lives.
Reporter Deborah Ng from Eye News Asia joins us from Singapore with an update -- Deborah, how is the procedure going?
DEBORAH NG, EYE NEWS ASIA CORRESPONDENT: It's going very well. Now they're in one of the most critical stages, which is creating a bypass using a vein from the thigh of one of the twins, Ladan. And basically why is this necessary? It's because both twins share a main vein necessary for draining blood from the brain. And if they are separated, well, one will be without that vein. So what they're trying to do now is to reconstruct a new vein for that twin.
And it's a process that's gone on for about 13 and a half hours already and it's expected to be done by this evening, in just a few hour's time. After that what happens is there will be a separation of the brain itself, and that, too, is a very critical stage -- Kris.
OSBORN: Well, Deborah, I was reading that the vein they're working on separating, as you were describing, is in some places as thick as a finger. It can't be an easy operation. It's got to have -- it's got to be challenging, no?
NG: Definitely. I mean at every stage right from the tests to the separation, there are critical points. Anesthesia was very difficult. And for this part, surgeons have to be quick and they have to ensure that everything goes well. This is the first time that adult conjoined twins are being separated.
So there are a lot of unknowns and surgeons are discovering new things all along the way. Already there's been a delay from the opening of the skull, which was done yesterday, because they've -- what they found was that the skull bones were really thick and it was really difficult to open.
So, but from what we hear on the whole it's been going very well. And in the operating theater, the situation is very calm and doctors are pleased with their progress -- Kris.
OSBORN: Well, and Deborah, I imagine family members and loved ones are not far away praying, hoping and waiting.
NG: That's right. They have a group of very close friends that they made in Singapore, as well as some friends that have flown in from Iran itself. And they've been having prayer sessions about almost every night, either at the hospital or just in their homes. And at each critical stage, for example, just before they entered the operating theater, a group of seven friends were there just holding their hands and just listening to them. And the twins were just saying, "Kiss me, kiss me," you know? Just be with me -- Kris.
OSBORN: All right, thank you very much, Deborah.
I'll bet that presence made a big difference.
Thanks for that report.
NG: Thank you.
OSBORN: Deborah Ng from Eye News Asia.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired July 7, 2003 - 05:38 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KRIS OSBORN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, 29-year-old Iranian twins joined at the head have been in surgery for more than a day now. An international team of doctors, neurosurgeons in Singapore is conducting a delicate marathon operation that could separate the women and allow the sisters to live individual lives.
Reporter Deborah Ng from Eye News Asia joins us from Singapore with an update -- Deborah, how is the procedure going?
DEBORAH NG, EYE NEWS ASIA CORRESPONDENT: It's going very well. Now they're in one of the most critical stages, which is creating a bypass using a vein from the thigh of one of the twins, Ladan. And basically why is this necessary? It's because both twins share a main vein necessary for draining blood from the brain. And if they are separated, well, one will be without that vein. So what they're trying to do now is to reconstruct a new vein for that twin.
And it's a process that's gone on for about 13 and a half hours already and it's expected to be done by this evening, in just a few hour's time. After that what happens is there will be a separation of the brain itself, and that, too, is a very critical stage -- Kris.
OSBORN: Well, Deborah, I was reading that the vein they're working on separating, as you were describing, is in some places as thick as a finger. It can't be an easy operation. It's got to have -- it's got to be challenging, no?
NG: Definitely. I mean at every stage right from the tests to the separation, there are critical points. Anesthesia was very difficult. And for this part, surgeons have to be quick and they have to ensure that everything goes well. This is the first time that adult conjoined twins are being separated.
So there are a lot of unknowns and surgeons are discovering new things all along the way. Already there's been a delay from the opening of the skull, which was done yesterday, because they've -- what they found was that the skull bones were really thick and it was really difficult to open.
So, but from what we hear on the whole it's been going very well. And in the operating theater, the situation is very calm and doctors are pleased with their progress -- Kris.
OSBORN: Well, and Deborah, I imagine family members and loved ones are not far away praying, hoping and waiting.
NG: That's right. They have a group of very close friends that they made in Singapore, as well as some friends that have flown in from Iran itself. And they've been having prayer sessions about almost every night, either at the hospital or just in their homes. And at each critical stage, for example, just before they entered the operating theater, a group of seven friends were there just holding their hands and just listening to them. And the twins were just saying, "Kiss me, kiss me," you know? Just be with me -- Kris.
OSBORN: All right, thank you very much, Deborah.
I'll bet that presence made a big difference.
Thanks for that report.
NG: Thank you.
OSBORN: Deborah Ng from Eye News Asia.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
