Conjoined Twins
Maria Scott
July 28, 2008
Throughout all history, conjoined twins have only been in myths and legends. The Greek god Janus had two faces. One of the faces was an old one, and the other young. The earliest documented conjoined twin were joined at the hip. Mary and Eliza Chulkhurst were born in 1100 in England. They died at age thirty-two as wealthy sisters. When they did die they gave a small fortune to the Church of England.
Conjoined, or Siamese, twins are very rare. The the term Siamese was coined as a reference to Eng and Chang Butler. They were famous conjoined twins in Siam. Only one out every 200,000 babies are conjoined, and only a few hundred every year. More than half of the conjoined babies are stillborn. And only one third live more than a few days. The overall survival of conjoined twins are 5-25%. The chances of a female being born alive are greater than a male being born alive. Although conjoined males are conceived in ovary happen more often than females, they just die before labor. Seventy percent of all conjoined twins are females.
There are many reasons how this happen. The most common one is that the embryo splits to make identical twins within two weeks of being in the ovary. However, it stops before the cycle is complete leaving a partial separated egg. Therefore the fetus is made, but it is conjoined.
Some doctors choose to try to get the conjoined babies separated. The sergury is extremely risky. The mortality rates vary at the type of connection the twins have and the organs they share. There is no known survivors of twins who had conjoined hearts. Only after the birth can a doctor find out what organs are being shared among the twins. They try to have babies that are joined to be separated so they can have easier lives, but after the separation they need rehabilitation because of the position of the spine, which makes it hard to bend and sit up straight. When and if one twin dies the other heart keeps pumping until it dies too because their blood is drained. If they do get separated and one dies, the other one has a good chance of having a guilt complex because he or she thinks it should have been them to die. Ethical debates state that the twins want to be separated. Masha and Dasha Krinoshlyapona from Moscow were joined in there lower body, and they prefer their conjoined lives.
There are three classified ways that conjoined twins are grouped into. One is in the mid torso, which includes the chest and upper abdomen. Seventy-three percent of all conjoined twins are this way. The lower torso has the hips, legs, and genitalia combined. This is twenty-three percent of conjoined twins. The other four percent is the upper torso, which is the head of the twins.
Conjoined, or Siamese, twins are very rare. The the term Siamese was coined as a reference to Eng and Chang Butler. They were famous conjoined twins in Siam. Only one out every 200,000 babies are conjoined, and only a few hundred every year. More than half of the conjoined babies are stillborn. And only one third live more than a few days. The overall survival of conjoined twins are 5-25%. The chances of a female being born alive are greater than a male being born alive. Although conjoined males are conceived in ovary happen more often than females, they just die before labor. Seventy percent of all conjoined twins are females.
There are many reasons how this happen. The most common one is that the embryo splits to make identical twins within two weeks of being in the ovary. However, it stops before the cycle is complete leaving a partial separated egg. Therefore the fetus is made, but it is conjoined.
Some doctors choose to try to get the conjoined babies separated. The sergury is extremely risky. The mortality rates vary at the type of connection the twins have and the organs they share. There is no known survivors of twins who had conjoined hearts. Only after the birth can a doctor find out what organs are being shared among the twins. They try to have babies that are joined to be separated so they can have easier lives, but after the separation they need rehabilitation because of the position of the spine, which makes it hard to bend and sit up straight. When and if one twin dies the other heart keeps pumping until it dies too because their blood is drained. If they do get separated and one dies, the other one has a good chance of having a guilt complex because he or she thinks it should have been them to die. Ethical debates state that the twins want to be separated. Masha and Dasha Krinoshlyapona from Moscow were joined in there lower body, and they prefer their conjoined lives.
There are three classified ways that conjoined twins are grouped into. One is in the mid torso, which includes the chest and upper abdomen. Seventy-three percent of all conjoined twins are this way. The lower torso has the hips, legs, and genitalia combined. This is twenty-three percent of conjoined twins. The other four percent is the upper torso, which is the head of the twins.
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