RIYADH: The medical team of the Saudi Conjoined Twins Program in Riyadh began the separation of Jamaican 2-year-olds Azaria and Azura Elson at the King Abdullah Specialized Children’s Hospital on Thursday.
A member of the program told Arab News the operation began in the morning.
In a statement, Dr. Abdullah Al-Rabeeah, who heads the surgical team, said the children arrived in the Kingdom on July 28. Al-Rabeeah is also an adviser at the royal court and leads the Kingdom’s aid agency KSrelief.
The twins share a lower chest, abdomen and liver, and possibly also intestines and pericardium, Al-Rabeeah said.
One of the children has significant congenital defects and a weakened heart muscle, with its pumping capacity at only 20 percent. This increases the risk of the surgery.
Al-Rabeeah said he had explained the situation to their mother and she had agreed to the operation.
He explained that the medical team decided to place balloons under the skin to stretch it, which would allow the surgical team to cover the gap after separation.
Al-Rabeeah stated that the operation is expected to take about nine hours in six stages, involving 25 staff members in the fields of nursing, anesthesia, pediatric surgery, and plastic surgery.
Al-Rabeeah said this was the 67th operation conducted by the program, which has cared for 152 sets of twins from 28 countries over more than 35 years.
He praised his team and thanked the nation’s leaders King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for their support.
