Riyadh: A Saudi medical team started this morning the complex separation surgery of Burkinabe conjoined twins Hawa and Khadija at King Abdullah Specialist Children's Hospital in Riyadh. The 17-month-old girls are joined at the lower chest and abdomen, sharing the pericardium, liver, and intestines.
According to Saudi Press Agency, the surgery, conducted under the directives of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and HRH Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, is led by King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSrelief) Supervisor General Dr. Abdullah Al Rabeeah.
In a statement issued today, Al Rabeeah said that the operation, expected to last eight hours, will be performed in five stages with 26 consultants, specialists, and support staff from various medical disciplines, including anesthesia, pediatric surgery, and plastic surgery. According to Al Rabeeah, the success rate exceeds 80%.
This operation marks the 62nd separation performed by the Saudi Conjoined Twins Program, which has treated 146 conjoined twins from 27 countries over 35 years. The program's global leadership is recognized by the United Nations, which designated November 24 as World Conjoined Twins Day.
Al Rabeeah expressed his gratitude to the Saudi leadership for its unwavering support and wished the twins a swift recovery and safe return to Burkina Faso.