Hoping for the best

Watching a baby crawl across the floor is probably the best sight to behold for parents. But Shahida and Raju Mia, a couple from Gaibandha, are deprived of it, as Shahida last year gave birth to conjoined twins, who could hardly move as per their wish let alone crawl on the floor.   

With an expectation that the babies -- Tofa and Tahura -- would get a normal life like other kids, the parents got the duo admitted to Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) on July 15. Finally, there is a ray of hope for the couple as the babies -- joined back-to-back at the pelvis and lower spine, each with separate hearts, heads and limbs -- will undergo a surgery tomorrow.  

But it was a tough call to make for the parents to give consent to the surgery. They want their daughters to be separated; on the other hand, they are a bit anxious if anything terrible happens. Shahida said their daughters, who would turn one soon, would not learn to walk if they are not separated now.

"It was hard to give consent to the surgery; but my daughters will toddle around soon -- an imagination gives us the much-needed mental strength," said the infants' mother. The couple also have a five-year-old son.

During a visit to DMCH on Saturday, these correspondents found that Tofa was sleeping and Tahura was fiddling with a cell phone. 

Prof Shahnoor Islam, associate professor of paediatrics surgery at DMCH, who is supervising the treatment of the infants, termed the conjoined state Pygopagus.

Although conjoined surgeries took place in the past, but this is the first time Pygopagus surgery will be done in Bangladesh, she said.

"We are hopeful of conducting a successful operation. However, complications might arise during operation or afterwards," said Shahnoor.

"In the worst case scenario, the conjoined twins might not be able to move their legs," said the doctor.

The babies were born on September 29 last year in a remote village in Paschim Dinia of Sunderganj upazila with the help of a local midwife. Shahida and Raju were not aware of having twins, since Shahida did not go through any ultrasonography (USG) procedure during her pregnancy. 

Confused, the couple did not know what to do in such a situation. After five days, they took the conjoined twins to Gaibandha Sadar Hospital as their abdomens started to swell failing to pass stool. The hospital authorities referred the babies to DMCH the next day.  

As the babies were too sensitive to undergo a major surgery, the DMCH doctors then conducted surgeries in the abdomens for letting the stool pass for the time being. The couple were then instructed to bring back the babies to the hospital when they turn six months old.

After six months, the babies were admitted to the hospital again. But the condition was still not favourable for conducting a surgery. Therefore, the doctors sent them back. This time, on July 15, the couple got the twins admitted to the hospital after the doctors gave them the go-ahead.

After months of preparation, fear, and sleepless night, the parents of the conjoined twins are hopeful that their daughters will live a normal life like other children.