A team of British doctors has made new medical history by separating twins who were born joined at the head.
In the most successful operation of its kind ever, baby girls Rital and Ritaj Gaboura, who are now 11 months old, were separated after the last of four complex procedures at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children in London.
Their skulls were joined into one and, although they did not share brain tissue, they did share vital arteries and nerves. Ritaj supplied half of her sister's brain with blood, while draining most of it back to her own heart and her body was, therefore, doing most of the work for both of them. Their condition was particularly complicated to treat.
Any significant drop in blood pressure caused by surgery would have caused severe neurological damage. While only one in ten million survives.
After the surgery involving top specialists in craniofacial techniques, neurology, cardiology and radiology, doctors believe the babies have made a good recovery after the final operation last month. And it is so far thought they have suffered no neurological side effects.
The children were born in October 2010 in Khartoum, Sudan.


据英国《每日邮报》9月18日报道，英国医生成功分离了一对头部连体双胞胎，创造了新的医学历史。

这是有史以来同类手术中最成功的一次，女婴利塔尔和利塔格•卡布拉现在已经11个月大了，她们在伦敦大欧蒙德街儿童医院接受了四次复杂的手术，在最后一次中，终于分离。

这对女婴的头盖骨连在一起，虽然她们并不共用大脑组织，但却共用关乎生死的动脉和神经。利塔尔一半的血液流入利塔格的大脑中，而且其中大部分最后还会流回利塔尔的心脏，因此利塔尔的身体为维持两人（的生命）做了大部分的工作。她们的状况使治疗变得尤其棘手。


任何（一次）因手术引起的血压激降都有可能致使她们的脑神经严重受损。她们活下来的可能性只有千万分之一。

颅面技术、神经学、心脏病学和放射学的首席专家参与了在上月进行的最后一次手术，医生认为这对婴儿的恢复情况良好。目前她们的神经方面尚未受到影响。


两个孩子于2010年10月出生在苏丹喀土穆市。

• medical [´medikəl] a.医学的；医疗的 (初中英语单词)
• complex [´kɔmpleks] a.复杂的 n.综合企业 (初中英语单词)
• therefore [´ðeəfɔ:] ad.&conj.因此；所以 (初中英语单词)
• complicated [´kɔmplikeitid] a.结构复杂的；难懂的 (初中英语单词)
• pressure [´preʃə] n.压榨 vt.对...施压力 (初中英语单词)
• severe [si´viə] a.严厉的；苛刻的 (初中英语单词)
• tissue [´tiʃu:, -sju:] n.织物，薄绢，纸 (高中英语单词)
• significant [sig´nifikənt] a.重要的；意义重大的 (高中英语单词)
• recovery [ri´kʌvəri] n.重获；获得；恢复 (高中英语单词)
• surgery [´sə:dʒəri] n.外科；外科手术 (英语四级单词)