Doctors reluctant to give specific date for discharge
The formerly conjoined twins from Odisha, Jaga and Kalia, who were separated after a 16-hour-long operation on October 26, 2017, at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here could be looking at a discharge date by March-end.
While the doctors treating the twins were reluctant to give a specific date for discharge, they said “an official announcement will be made when we feel the children are ready”.
‘Constant care’
“The children are under constant care and monitoring. When we feel they are fit enough, they will be discharged. It is not one person’s decision. A decision will be taken after proper review,” said a senior doctor who is on the team of physicians looking after the twins.
“Their parents will be taught how to take care of them on a day-to-day basis,” said the doctors.
The twins, who have been under treatment for eight months, will head to their home town in Bhubaneswar where their follow-up treatment will continue.
The craniopagus (joined at the head) twins from Kandhamal district were admitted to AIIMS on July 13, 2017. The doctors said the twins suffered from a condition that afflicted one in 30 lakh children, of which half die either at birth or within 24 hours.
The first phase of the surgery was performed on August 28 last. Doctors at AIIMS tried to partially separate their brains and created a venous bypass as the children shared veins that return blood to the heart from the brain. The second phase of surgery on October 26th, 2017, completely separated the twins.
Doctors at AIIMS here said Jaga and Kalia underwent multiple grafting procedures and will have to wear head protection gear.
Earlier this month, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) reportedly asked the authorities at AIIMS here to take appropriate action on a petition seeking to stop shifting of the formerly conjoined twins to AIIMS Bhubaneswar. The plea said the Bhubaneswar institute does not have the infrastructure essential for the care and treatment of the twins.
Experts said about 50 craniopagus conjoined twins have been operated globally till date and very few have survived. Such cases have a success rate of below 25%, they added.
Prasanta Patnaik