Conjoined Twins In Texas Finally Separated Through Surgery; Organ Reconstruction To Follow

Birth of conjoined twins is a rare occurrence and the survival rate of these newborns is very low. Fortunately, a successful surgery in Texas has finally separated conjoined sisters Scarlet and Ximena Hernandez-Torres.

The successful operation that separated the conjoined twins was conducted at Driscoll Children's Hospital, Fox News Latino reports. The hospital's spokesperson, Jeff Salzgeber told the press that the surgery took several hours to finish. The team of surgeons who operated on the twins spent months in preparation for the delicate surgical operation.

The twins will have to undergo reconstruction of their colon and bladders which they used to share as conjoined twins. Catalina, the identical triplet sibling of Scarlett and Ximena, was born without life-threatening health problems.

The sisters' chance for full recovery is very positive, ABC News reports. However, the girls will have to undergo a series of additional surgeries in order to stay healthy and survive.

Scarlett and Ximena are very fortunate because of the very low survival rate of conjoined twins. "Approximately 40 to 60 percent of conjoined twins arrive stillborn, and about 35 percent survive only one day," University of Maryland Medical Center explains. "The overall survival rate of conjoined twins is somewhere between 5 percent and 25 percent." Most conjoined twins who are separated through surgery will also need to go through a long process of physical rehabilitation in order to move properly.