Conjoined Twins in Goiânia Die After Emergency Separation

Overview

• The surgeon, Dr. Zacharias Calil, announced Sunday that one twin developed severe necrotizing enterocolitis, suffered an irreversible cardiac arrest, and an emergency separation was performed but both infants died.
• Medical teams attempted prolonged resuscitation in the operating room and carried out the separation at the Hospital Estadual da Criança e do Adolescente; clinicians said they did everything possible to save the babies.
• The infants were born conjoined at the abdomen and shared a liver and portion of the large bowel, a combination that makes separation technically complex and higher risk.
• An elective separation had been planned for the week of June 10 if the twins remained stable, but the sudden infection in one child forced the unplanned operation.
• The parents, from Palmas in Tocantins, have publicly mourned and arranged a wake and burial in Goiânia at Cemitério Vale da Paz while hospitals and the community continue to support the family.