title: Staged separation of craniopagus twins.
abstract: Craniopagus twins are rare and account for up to 6% of all conjoined twins. No hospital will encounter many such twins and the opportunity to develop expertise is limited. We have dealt with 2 such sets and illustrate our approach by reference to our most recent set. We believe that detailed imaging allows precise delineation of the anatomy and facilitates detailed planning of the surgery. When venous drainage from the 2 brains is connected, we believe that staged separation is preferable as gradual alteration of hemodynamics may be safer than a single-stage procedure.
authors.affiliation: Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust, London WC1N 3JH, UK. Electronic address: David.Dunaway@gosh.nhs.uk.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Dunaway
authors.affiliation: Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust, London WC1N 3JH, UK.
authors.forename: N U Owase
authors.initials: NU
authors.lastname: Jeelani
mesh_terms: D001921:Brain / Q000002:abnormalities / Q000098:blood supply / Q000601:surgery; D019465:Craniofacial Abnormalities / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D019635:Neurosurgical Procedures / Q000379:methods*; D019651:Plastic Surgery Procedures / Q000379:methods*; D014428:Twins, Conjoined / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery*
keywords: Conjoined twins; Craniopagus; Staged separation