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Essay, Paragraph or Speech on “Craniopagi : Conjoined Twins” Complete Essay, Speech for Class 10, Class 12 and Graduation and other classes.

Craniopagi : Conjoined Twins

 

There appears to be no limit to what modern medicine can do or at least what it promises to do many times. We have been reminded of how science can stretch the boundaries of possibilities. In Delhi the family of con-joined twins learnt that there may be hope for their daughters as a team of world famous neurosurgeons decided to attempt the most complicated surgical procedure in the world.

The phenomenon of conjoined children is one that both perplexes and saddens us. Farah and Sabah Ahmed–two 10 year old girls from Patna are the rarest of conjoined twins. Their bodies are joined at cranium (skull). Their parents are Shakil Ahmed and Rabia Khatoon. It is a condition found in less than one in a million cases with a life expectancy rarely more than 30 years. For the past five years even as the girls grew up and developed distinct personalities their family kept them indoor in face of social scrutiny and redicule. Unless they are separated their chances of surviving another 10 years are slender. Their condition has toll on their health.

Ordinarily the twins from poor family would have had no hope but this is a story about science and humanity. The girls now have a chance to lead individual lives due to intervention from doctors. Doctors believe that they can  separate them. The crown prince of Abu Dhabi will fund the $ 1 million (Rs. 4.3 crore) treatment

Craniopagus Twins—The first case in the human history of Craniopagus twins was that of two sisters Chang and Eng–the Celebrated 19th century Siamese twins from Thailand. They were joined together at the sternum by a thick muscular ligament. Since surgical technology was not as advanced as it is today they could not be separated mainly because their livers were fused . As a result they lived united to the age of 63 and when one of them ultimately died, the other’s death automatically followed. It is feared that Conjoined twins from Bihar whose skull are fused sharing a saggital sinus blood vessel in their brains could suffer a similar fate. The reason is because one of them does not possess a kidney and as a result the other’s pair of kidneys is having to do double duty with the added circulatory overload. This has started to take its toll and Farah’s blood pressure has shot up accompanied with rapid weight loss and leaking heart valves. Doctors are of the opinion that over a period of three years or so her health would deteriorate much further and about 10 years down the line her heart could finally wear out. Unfortunately as in the case of Chang and Eng the death of one would greatly hasten the demise of other within a short span of time.

Fortunately for Sabah and Farah, however, this is the 21st century and medical techniques have advanced almost unrecognizably from what they were 150 years ago. Although the girls have a joint cranium and their brain is fused. Surgery is now viable option and separating them has been planned in six steps over the next nine months. As renowned paediatric neurosurgeon of John Hopkins Institute, B. Carson puts it “Every piece of knowledge available on the earth today will be used.” Under Carson’s guidance a battery of number tests have already been undertaken to probe the nature and extent of the girl’s condition. These include tests angiograms, CT scans, MRI reports and a magnetic resonance venogram by a team of over 20 experts from different diagnostic fields. Whatever the outcome of the surgery the technology under-lying its various processes emphasises the fact that we have finally begun to move away from the narrow confines of super specialization. As science uncovers the profound complexities of the human body it also points to an integrated multidimensional therapeutic approach as being the best one.

Some Facts About Craniopagi Twins

(1) Craniopagi twins are among the rarest occurring one in a million births. But more are either still born or die within 24 hours of being born.

(2) Chang and Eng of Thailand lived the longest as conjoined twins. They passed away at the age of 63 in 1874 after 21 children.

(3) Laxi and Reba Schappelli (44) of the US are the oldest craniopagi twins alive; they are joined at the top of the head.

The fastest operation to separate conjoined twins was in London in 2003. Zainab and Jannat Rahman who shared a liver were seprated in 45 minutes.

At 28 Iranian sisters Laden and Laleh were the oldest conjoined twins to be operated upon. The surgery was a failure.

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