Discharge Of Jaga, Kalia From AIIMS After Talks With Doctors: Minister

Bhubaneswar: Health and Family Welfare minister Pratap Jena on Thursday said that the decision to discharge of Jaga-Kalia separated conjoined twins from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi would be taken after a meeting with the doctors the following day.

“I will accompany a team of five specialist doctors to New Delhi tomorrow. A meeting will be held with the doctors who are looking after the separated conjoined twins. After getting the details about their health, a decision will be taken on whether to discharge them from the institute,” Jena told mediapersons here.

Sources in the AIIMS had recently said that the health of the separated conjoined twins has been improving steadily. The stitches on the head of the twins have been removed. After the surgery, doctors had restored the veins on Jaga’s head. However, they had to replace the damaged veins with the artificial ones for Kalia.

The five-member team of specialist doctors are Dr Sanjeeb Mishra, HoD, Neuro Surgery, Dr Jagmohan Mishra, Professor, Plastic Surgery and Dr Prithviraj Singh, Assistant Professor, Plastic Surgery of SCB Medical College and Hospital, Prof Saroj Satpathy, Superintendent, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Post Graduate Institute of Pediatrics, Cuttack and Dr Rashmi Ranjan Mohanty, Associate Professor, Medicine, AIIMS, Bhubaneswar.

The doctors are confident that the twins will be completely cured soon.

The twins from Milipada village in Kandhamal district were joined at the head. They were successfully separated after an 11-hour marathon surgery by a team of 30 specialists from neurosurgery, neuro-anaesthesia and plastic surgery departments on October 25 last year.

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had met the separated conjoined twins on November 26 and prayed for their speedy recovery.

He had thanked Prof Randeep Guleria and Prof. Ashok Mohapatra and the entire team of doctors for performing an incredible job and for their untiring efforts in saving the precious lives of the two little children and assured the Director, AIIMS, of providing necessary support for their treatment.