VietNamNet Bridge – A set of twins whose bodies are joined at chest and stomach were born at the Tu Du Obstetrics Hospital in HCM City on August 11.

They are currently being cared by doctors of the Children’s Hospital 2, the hospital’s deputy director, Truong Quang Dinh, told VietNamNet.

The mother is a 23-year-old woman from the central province of Ha Tinh.

The woman knew in advance about her conjoined twins. She took the initiative in having a cesarean at 5.30pm on August 11 at the Tu Du Obstetrics Hospital in HCM City, when the twins were at 36 weeks old.

The conjoined twins were then moved to the HCM City Children’s Hospital 2.

Doctors of the Children’s Hospital 2 said that the two baby girls join in chest and stomach. Their heads, faces, limbs, sex organs and anuses are normal.

X-ray scan shows that the babies have their separate spines but one baby has stiff spine.

Ultrasound scan reveals that they join in the liver and heart tip.

The twins are breastfed. They urinate and have bowel movements normally. They are under the best care of doctors.

Dinh said doctors will make some more tests to seek the most appropriate treatment methods.

Conjoined twins are identical twins whose bodies are joined in utero. A rare phenomenon, the occurrence is estimated to range from 1 in 50,000 births to 1 in 100,000 births. Approximately half are stillborn, and a smaller fraction of pairs born alive have abnormalities incompatible with life. The overall survival rate for conjoined twins is approximately 25 percent. The condition is more frequently found among females, with a ratio of 3:1.

Thanh Huyen