Ethiopian conjoined twins Hiyab and Wuhbto have been successfully separated after a marathon surgery at a St. Louis children’s hospital.
The craniopagus twins, whose skulls were joined at the crown, underwent the grueling 24-hour procedure from Feb. 24 into Feb. 25 at SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital, officials announced Wednesday. The operation followed 300 hours of painstaking planning by the medical team.
“Partnership, collaboration and expertise were the building blocks of this incredible feat,” said Dr. Andrew J. White, the hospital’s chief medical officer, in a statement. He noted that the delicate procedure demanded “sublime precision” and seamless multi-specialty coordination.
White elaborated on the technical demands in the same statement: “Successful surgical separation of craniopagus twins requires sublime precision, meticulous attention to detail, and highly complex coordination across many specialties.”
The twins traveled from Ethiopia to Missouri with assistance from Ronald McDonald House Charities and Ethiopian Airlines, organizations that helped facilitate the complex international medical journey.
SSM Health Cardinal Glennon described the separation surgery as “one of the most complex and rare pediatric procedures performed in the United States” in its official statement.
Wuhbto has already undergone a cranioplasty operation, a surgical procedure used to repair, reshape or reconstruct a defect or missing area in the skull. Her twin sister Hiyab is scheduled for the same operation this fall.
The rehabilitation effort now underway requires 60 clinical team members plus support from partner organizations, according to hospital officials.
Since the operation, both girls have been able to participate in individualized therapy tailored to each child’s specific needs.
The twins’ case represents an extraordinary collaboration spanning multiple countries and medical disciplines, with the surgical team drawing on extensive pre-operative planning to achieve the separation.
Craniopagus twins are among the rarest forms of conjoined twins, occurring in approximately one in every 2.5 million births, making successful separation procedures exceptionally uncommon worldwide.
Hiyab’s upcoming cranioplasty this fall will mark the next major milestone in the twins’ medical journey, with the hospital continuing to coordinate her care through the same multi-specialty approach that enabled the initial separation.