THE Sabah Women and Children's Hospital in Likas, Kota Kinabalu, has made history by successfully separating a pair of pygopagus conjoined (Siamese) twins on July 2.
The surgery, which took place at the hospital’s main operating theatre, was carried out by a multidisciplinary team of specialists.
Pygopagus twins are conjoined at the lower back, specifically the sacrum, and may share parts of the neural tube, lower digestive tract and genital organs.
The girls, now in stable condition, underwent the operation at just 28 days old, instead of the usual four to six months for such procedures.
The twin girls, from an interior district in the State, were born prematurely at 32 weeks.
One of the twins had a heart condition and kidney failure, requiring the separation surgery to be carried out at just 28 days old, far earlier than the usual timing of four to six months for such procedures.
According to the Sabah Health Department, the Pygopagus conjoined twins were joined at the lower abdomen, where the digestive and reproductive organs are located and due to one of the girls’ condition, the surgery had to be expedited.
The surgery involved specialists from multiple disciplines, including neonatology, anaesthesiology, paediatric surgery, neurosurgery, spinal surgery, plastic and reconstructive surgery, and radiology, with additional support from specialist teams from Peninsular Malaysia.
Both infants were successfully separated and are currently in stable condition, receiving close monitoring in the hospital’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).
The Health Department said the success of the surgery reflected the dedication and commitment of the hospital’s staff in providing the best possible care for paediatric patients with complex congenital anomalies. – July 7, 2026
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