Ex-Conjoined Twins Celebrate First Birthday Apart

Formerly conjoined Bangladeshi twins Trishna and Krishna celebrated a special first birthday apart Tuesday, their Australian guardian said, describing it as a "miracle".

Born joined at the head, the girls were released from hospital Monday just in time to celebrate their third birthday and first Christmas apart at home, after marathon surgery to separate their fused brains five weeks ago.

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"It's just going to be a small private family celebration," a spokeswoman for the Children First Foundation charity told AFP on Tuesday.

Guardian Moira Kelly said they celebrated with separate themed cakes - Dora the Explorer for stronger twin Trishna and The Wiggles children's band for Krishna - and though it was small, the party was "something very special."

"What a wonderful world we live in when miracles like this happen," Kelly told commercial television.

Separated Conjoined Twins Leave Australian Hospital
Formerly conjoined Bangladeshi twins Trishna and Krishna left hospital on Monday, after Australian doctors who separated their fused brains decided they should celebrate their third birthday at home.

"We're having a little birthday party and something in their life that's small, because everything's been so big," she said, reflecting on the twins' momentous year.

The girls have amazed medics with their recovery from surgery, with Trishna crawling on her own for the first time on Monday.

Conjoined Twins Separated After Surgery Lasting 27 Hours
Conjoined Bangladeshi twins, who were joined at the top of their heads and shared blood vessels and brain tissue were separated by surgeons at Melbourne's Royal Children's Hospital

Kelly said cakes were also dropped off to doctors at Melbourne's Royal Children's Hospital "just to say Happy Birthday from Trishna and Krishna for them all."

"It's a celebration of life for all these people," she said.

Conjoined Twins Set for Surgery in Australia
A pair of Bangladeshi twins who are joined at the head will undergo a risky and highly complex operation to separate them next week, Australian surgeons said on Friday.

Trishna and Krishna were brought to Melbourne two years ago by Australian aid workers, who realised they required intensive medical care and faced certain death in Bangladesh.

Although the girls were given only a 25 percent chance of them both surviving the difficult separation surgery without brain damage, both have a shown remarkable resilience since the surgery.

They are now finding their feet, a change from their old habit of crawling around on their backs, and doctors believe they have come through the operation without serious neurological damage.

Source-AFP
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