Pedro and Augusto.Photo:Dayton Children’s HospitalDoctors at an Ohio children’s hospital are speaking out nearly a year after successfully separating conjoined twins from Central America.It took two years and four major surgeries to separate Guatemalan twins Pedro and Augusto, who were born conjoined at the head, according to aDayton Children’s Hospital.The boys, now 5, were officially separated on the morning of April 8, 2022 in a three-day long surgery, according toGood Morning America.Dr. Robert Lober, a pediatric neurosurgeon who assisted with the twins’ separation, said the final surgery became more complex after doctors realized separating a large artery connecting the twins could potentially have serious impacts on Augusto’s speech and motor skills.“It took a personal toll," Lober toldGMA. “These were boys that we’d come to love over a long period of time [who] everybody’d come to love. They became our boys.”Pedro and Augusto while conjoined at the head.Dayton Children’s HospitalDoctors at the medical center Dayton Children’s Hospital first learned about Pedro and Augusto’s condition in 2019, according toGMA.The two were “joined at the top of the head with a 90 degree turn” — which the hospital said is called “craniopagus O’Connell class III.“Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.“There is very little research or practical knowledge in medical literature about how to separate craniopagus twins, especially those who are connected at this angle,” Lober said in a news release from the hospital announcing a documentary about the twins’ separation.Pedro after he and his brother Augusto were separated.Dayton Children’s HospitalBut Dr. Christopher Gordon, chief of craniofacial and plastic surgery at Dayton Children’s, said doctors had to balance speed and caution in order to keep the twins alive.At one point, the boys were teetering on “the edge of organ failure” due to the changes their bodies underwent following the procedures, Gordon toldGMA.However, Pedro and Augusto remained “incredibly strong” throughout the complicated process, according to the doctor.Augusto after he and his brother Pedro were separated.Dayton Children’s HospitalThe twins returned home to Guatemala in June 2023, and are now living as separate individuals, Dayton Children’s Hospital said.Their story will be featured in the filmConnected: The Story of the Seemingly Impossible Separation of Pedro and Augusto.
Pedro and Augusto.Photo:Dayton Children’s Hospital
Dayton Children’s Hospital
Doctors at an Ohio children’s hospital are speaking out nearly a year after successfully separating conjoined twins from Central America.It took two years and four major surgeries to separate Guatemalan twins Pedro and Augusto, who were born conjoined at the head, according to aDayton Children’s Hospital.The boys, now 5, were officially separated on the morning of April 8, 2022 in a three-day long surgery, according toGood Morning America.Dr. Robert Lober, a pediatric neurosurgeon who assisted with the twins’ separation, said the final surgery became more complex after doctors realized separating a large artery connecting the twins could potentially have serious impacts on Augusto’s speech and motor skills.“It took a personal toll," Lober toldGMA. “These were boys that we’d come to love over a long period of time [who] everybody’d come to love. They became our boys.”Pedro and Augusto while conjoined at the head.Dayton Children’s HospitalDoctors at the medical center Dayton Children’s Hospital first learned about Pedro and Augusto’s condition in 2019, according toGMA.The two were “joined at the top of the head with a 90 degree turn” — which the hospital said is called “craniopagus O’Connell class III.“Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.“There is very little research or practical knowledge in medical literature about how to separate craniopagus twins, especially those who are connected at this angle,” Lober said in a news release from the hospital announcing a documentary about the twins’ separation.Pedro after he and his brother Augusto were separated.Dayton Children’s HospitalBut Dr. Christopher Gordon, chief of craniofacial and plastic surgery at Dayton Children’s, said doctors had to balance speed and caution in order to keep the twins alive.At one point, the boys were teetering on “the edge of organ failure” due to the changes their bodies underwent following the procedures, Gordon toldGMA.However, Pedro and Augusto remained “incredibly strong” throughout the complicated process, according to the doctor.Augusto after he and his brother Pedro were separated.Dayton Children’s HospitalThe twins returned home to Guatemala in June 2023, and are now living as separate individuals, Dayton Children’s Hospital said.Their story will be featured in the filmConnected: The Story of the Seemingly Impossible Separation of Pedro and Augusto.
Doctors at an Ohio children’s hospital are speaking out nearly a year after successfully separating conjoined twins from Central America.
It took two years and four major surgeries to separate Guatemalan twins Pedro and Augusto, who were born conjoined at the head, according to aDayton Children’s Hospital.
The boys, now 5, were officially separated on the morning of April 8, 2022 in a three-day long surgery, according toGood Morning America.
Dr. Robert Lober, a pediatric neurosurgeon who assisted with the twins’ separation, said the final surgery became more complex after doctors realized separating a large artery connecting the twins could potentially have serious impacts on Augusto’s speech and motor skills.
“It took a personal toll," Lober toldGMA. “These were boys that we’d come to love over a long period of time [who] everybody’d come to love. They became our boys.”
Pedro and Augusto while conjoined at the head.Dayton Children’s Hospital
Doctors at the medical center Dayton Children’s Hospital first learned about Pedro and Augusto’s condition in 2019, according toGMA.
The two were “joined at the top of the head with a 90 degree turn” — which the hospital said is called “craniopagus O’Connell class III."
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
“There is very little research or practical knowledge in medical literature about how to separate craniopagus twins, especially those who are connected at this angle," Lober said in a news release from the hospital announcing a documentary about the twins’ separation.
Pedro after he and his brother Augusto were separated.Dayton Children’s Hospital
But Dr. Christopher Gordon, chief of craniofacial and plastic surgery at Dayton Children’s, said doctors had to balance speed and caution in order to keep the twins alive.
At one point, the boys were teetering on “the edge of organ failure” due to the changes their bodies underwent following the procedures, Gordon toldGMA.
However, Pedro and Augusto remained “incredibly strong” throughout the complicated process, according to the doctor.
Augusto after he and his brother Pedro were separated.Dayton Children’s Hospital
The twins returned home to Guatemala in June 2023, and are now living as separate individuals, Dayton Children’s Hospital said.
Their story will be featured in the filmConnected: The Story of the Seemingly Impossible Separation of Pedro and Augusto.
source: people.com
