May 18, 2006 7:11 am US/Central
Formerly Conjoined Twins Off Oxygen
Rochester, Minn. (AP) ―
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Abbigail Carlsen, four days after surgery.
Courtesy The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead
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Isabelle Carlsen, four days after surgery.
Courtesy The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead
Jesse Carlsen said Wednesday that his twin daughters, Abbigail and Isabelle, have been taken off oxygen as they continue to improve after their separation surgery at the Mayo Clinic.
But Jesse Carlsen said in a posting on the family's CaringBridge Web site that Wednesday was a rough day for the 5-month-old girls as they were being withdrawn from pain medication.
"They were real fussy and hurt, but we were there to make it as bearable as possible," he wrote.
There was also more good news. X-rays showed there were no leaks in their stomachs or small intestines, he wrote.
"That means we should be able to feed them soon."
The twins were born Nov. 29 attached at the diaphragm, pancreas and liver, and shared a common bile duct and part of an intestine. They have been steadily improving since being separated during a nearly 12 hour operation last Friday at the Mayo Clinic.
"They beat the odds, no question about it," said pediatric surgeon Dr. Christopher Moir, who led the 30-member team in the operating room.
In the five nights after the surgery, the girls slept apart for the first time since their birth. Their beds were fitted with mirrors so they didn't feel so alone.
On Wednesday, the Carlsens persuaded the medical staff to put the girls back in the same crib.
"It was worth it," Jesse Carlsen wrote on the Web site. "They fell asleep after 15 minutes."
Carlsen said the girls pre-surgery personalities are returning. For instance, earlier this week Isabelle's eyes followed some of her favorite toys -- a multicolored caterpillar and a purple mouse rattle.
"She's back," he said. "She's just like new."
If the twins continue to recover on schedule, the family could go home to Fargo, N.D., in a couple of weeks, hospital officials said.
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According to the Mayo Clinic, conjoined twins are extremely rare, occurring once in every 200,000 births.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
Slideshow: Twins Improving
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