The parents holding Tamim and Hamad, the twin babies who were separated by country’s first conjoined twin separation surgery held at the Sidra Medicine. Pic: Salim Matramkot/The Peninsula
DOHA: Sidra Medicine has successfully conducted Qatar’s first conjoined twins' separation surgery recently.
Twin boys Tamim and Hamad, who were joint at the liver and lower sternum, were operated successfully by Sidra doctors. The inspiring medical success story involved a huge multidisciplinary team of experts from across the hospital.
The twins were separated by a team of 10 surgeons and anesthesiologists, during a nine-hour procedure that went without any complications.
Less than 10 days after separation, Tamim and Hamad are recovering and expected to live normal, independent lives, said Dr Abdulla Al Kaabi, Chief Medical Officer at Sidra Medicine speaking at a press conference yesterday.
“This is a proud moment for the team at Sidra Medicine and the healthcare network in Qatar. This case is also indicative that we remain committed to our mission to provide children and women with outstanding tertiary healthcare services in an innovative and ultramodern facility specially designed to promote healing.”
Al Kaabi said that the success of this surgery is a testament to the investment made by the State of Qatar in medical services.
“The success of this separation surgery also establishes Sidra Medicine as an alternative for patients who previously had limited choices for the successful treatment and care of complex pediatric diseases in the region,” he added.
Cheick Ahmed Tidiany Daikite, Mali’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Qatar, the twin babies, their parents Ousmane Ag Mohammed and Fatimatou, many from the medical team who were involved in the procedure were present at the press conference.
The parents of Tamim and Hamad are from the West African country Mali. The twin’s mother was seen during her 29th week of pregnancy at Hamad Medical Cooperation (HMC), while on a visit from Mali to Qatar.
“We tried to explore international options for surgery until we found out about Sidra Medicine. We are immensely grateful to Qatar, Hamad Medical Corporation and Sidra Medicine for their tireless efforts to save the lives of our boys. As a sign of gratitude we named the children as Tamim and Hamad,” said Mohammed.
The surgery was planned and rehearsed for more than 200 hours.
A full complement of over 150 medical and support staff were undergoing simulation to minimise the risks and improve patient outcomes.
It was led by Dr Mansour Ali, Chair of the Department of Pediatric Surgery and Dr Abdalla Zarroug, Division Chief of Pediatric General and Thoracic Surgery.
“The babies were born on May 25 at HMC’s Women Wellness and Research Centre, prematurely at 33 weeks and five days. They were stabilized and transferred to Sidra’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit June 3. The first procedure was tissue expansion which was done by plastic surgeons on July 24. Two months later, on September 24, that’s when the actual separation took place,” said Dr Zarroug.
