Parents comforted after conjoined twins die

The parents of conjoined twins were being comforted by relatis today after their babies lost their short fight for life.

Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children in Dublin’s Crumlin confirmed the twins died late last 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 yesterday said that intensive medical investigation had shown the twins could not be parted.

The babies were delivered by caesarean section at the National Maternity Hospital on 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.

Hospital chief executive Gerry O’Dwyer confirmed the twins had been in a critical condition after their transfer.

Mr O’Dwyer said the parents have also requested that their privacy be respected.

He has confirmed the hospital would be heeding the parents’ wishes and no further updates would be released.

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.

The doctor reassured expectant mothers, saying: “This would be like a once off thing for the mother and unlikely to happen again.

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

Dr McAuliffe added: “These are very difficult births for the parents, they are usually taken by caesarean section.”

She added: “Most cases don’t have a happy ending.”

Conjoined twins occur about once in every 200,000 live births – there are about 55,000 births per year in Ireland.

However, Dr McAuliffe insisted: “A lot of people would miscarry early on.”

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 generally at around six months, however, the survival rate is only about 60%.

The doctor said that in instances where twins are joined it is generally discovered during ultra sound scans at about three months.

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

“A lot depends on the type of joining and the sharing of organs,” the foetal expert said.

“Birth defects are a quite high occurrence in these cases.”

The specialist said that 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.

The doctor said the cases were very difficult for everyone involved, including the large team of experts evaluating the prospects for separation.

Dr McAuliffe said surgeons at the Crumlin Hospital and Temple Street Children’s Hospital would have the skills to deal with conjoined twins and their possible separation.

“The most common ones are joined at the chest and tummy, in terms of their survival there it is difficult to separate them.

The twins originate from a single fertilised egg, so they are always identical and of the same sex.

As the embryo develops it starts to split into identical twins, however the process stops before it is complete. This leaves a partially separated egg which then develops into a conjoined foetus.