London: A London surgeon has told of his joy after successfully separating one-year-old twin girls in an extraordinary 14-hour operation. Professor Noor ul Owase Jeelani, a consultant paediatric neurosurgeon at Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH), completed the procedure at a hospital in Turkey on July 19.
The twins, named Minal and Mirha, are now recovering in hospital and expected to make full recoveries. Minal and Mirha were born in Pakistan with a rare pre-natal condition resulting in them being born conjoined at the head
The operation at Ankara Bilkent City Hospital was completed in two surgical stages over the course of three months, with the final procedure lasting 14 hours.
Prof Jeelani said: “From what I hear, the girls are thriving. My team sometimes call me the ‘triplet’ as I become so intellectually and emotionally invested in helping these children. It was so rewarding to see two healthy children and the joy on their parents’ faces - a really wonderful feeling.”
The case was referred to Prof Noor’s team in October 2023 when the twins were just a few weeks old. Prof Jeelani carried out the operation through his charity Gemini Untwined, which is dedicated to improving surgery and treatment for craniopagus children and others with complex craniofacial conditions.
He said: “We had already operated on two Turkish boys in 2020 so approached the Turkish Government with a similar request. They came back a week later with a positive response. It was logistically complex arranging the children to get to Turkey from Pakistan and to get our team over from the UK, but it went really well and the Turkish team was fantastic. Against the odds, we managed to pull it off.”
The team used mixed reality (MR) technology, which combined 3D images with the physical world to increase precision during the complex procedure.
