Twins Separated Soon After Birth

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30943, 27 December 1965, Page 2

Twins Separated Soon After Birth

(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright)

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 26.

A young woman who gave birth to Siamese twins yesterday is still unaware she did so —or that doctors 25 miles away had separated them six hours later.

The two girls, weighing a total of 12 pounds, were given a roughly 50-50 chance of survival

One was given complete intestines and Slightly better odds of survival. The other

was given an incomplete intestine. The babies were delivered to Mrs Robin Mantonya, aged 20, of North Hollywood, the first children for her and her husband, Gerald, 20, a film technician. She knew she was to have twins—but not that she would have Siamese twins when she underwent a Caesarean operation. The babies had a mutual bladder and intestines. Their abdomens were open, exposing their intestines.

Doctors at the Cedars of Lebanon Hospital, in Hollywood were alerted and the babies were taken there. A surgical team of 18 went to work. Surgeons divided the twins’ bladder, separated and re-routed the intestines to an external opening and sewed up their abdomens. In the babies’ favour were fine hearts, lungs and brains, doctors said. The mother meanwhile, under sedation from the operation, had not been told of the girl’s plight. She was expected to be told later tonight or early tomorrow.

The young father appeared stunned. All he could say was: “It happens once in every IdOOO births.” Actually, the odds are much higher than that. It is also unusual for Siamese twins to be separated so soon after birth. Usually they undergo study for months. “But,” said one of the surgeons, “this was an emergency.”