Chinese doctors separate 4-month-old conjoined twins

BEIJING (AP) - Chinese doctors have separated 4-month-old conjoined twin baby girls, the second such operation in the country in one week, state media reported Monday.

Xinhua News agency said the operation lasted nearly 12 hours.

The girls were born prematurely on March 15 without breastbones and with their livers, hearts and much of their breast and abdomen connected, Li Yanmin, director of the pediatric department at the First Hospital of Hebei Medical University in northern Hebei province, was quoted as saying.

Doctors separated the twins' livers, repositioned their hearts and rebuilt their breastbones, Xinhua said.

It said both were in a relatively stable condition, although the crucial first three days after Sunday's operation have not passed yet.

Last week, doctors in south China's Guangxi region separated a pair of newborn twin girls. One died shortly after the operation of heart and lung failure.