Parents comforted by relatives after tragic death of conjoined twins

THE parents of conjoined twins were being comforted by relatives yesterday after their babies died.

Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children in Crumlin, Dublin, confirmed the twins died late on Tuesday night just a day after their birth. The parents have appealed to the public to pray for the twins and all concerned at this difficult time.

Experts at the top children’s hospital had said intensive medical investigation had shown the twins could not be parted.

The babies were delivered by Caesarean section at the National Maternity Hospital at Holles Street at 8.30am on Monday.

It is understood the mother, who is in her early 30s and from Mullingar in Co Westmeath, was aware she was going to have conjoined twins.

An ultrasound scan early on in the pregnancy had shown the babies were joined.

The twins were transferred to Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children immediately after birth.

Dr Fionnuala McAuliffe, a maternal and foetal medical specialist at the National Maternity Hospital, said the birth of conjoined twins was an incredibly rare event.

“It is incredibly rare and people shouldn’t be worried about it happening if they are pregnant,” she said.

Conjoined twins occur about once in every 200,000 live births - there are about 55,000 births per year in Ireland. About 40% of the pairs are stillborn. Of those that are alive at birth, about a third die within 24 hours, one third are not suitable for separation and a third can be parted.

Dr McAuliffe said the best time to separate the twins was at around six months, but the survival rate is only about 60%.

Dr McAuliffe said the extent of the joining would then be explained to the parents, and this would allow for planning for the delivery.

“A lot depends on the type of joining and the sharing of organs,” she said. “Birth defects are a quite high occurrence.”

The specialist said the babies would be taken to the intensive care unit directly after birth where tests, including X-rays and ultrasounds, would be carried out to check on suitability for separating.

Dr McAuliffe said the cases were very difficult for everyone involved.