Twins undergo first-of-its-kind surgery at AIIMS

Adhi and Adhri, twin brothers aged one, successfully underwent a first-of-its kind neurosurgery at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences here.

The children underwent the surgery March 27, a week after being admitted in the hospital. They were discharged April 5.

The media came to know about the medical feat at a press conference here Wednesday.

The kids suffered from Craniosynostosis, a condition in which the bones and outer structure of the skulls grow faster than normal or into abnormal shapes. As a result, the brain has to bear the pressure because of the inadequate space available to it. This causes acute pain and other problems.

Deepak Gupta, additional professor, Department of Neurosurgery, AIIMS, said: "Craniosynostosis is a childhood disease wherein an early fusion of skull bones leads to restricted growth of the brain."

A team of four doctors headed by Arvind Chaturvedi performed the cranial remodelling surgery, which helped relieve the pressure inside the brains of the children.

Parents Benu and Sandhya were elated to see their children after the operation.

Benu, who runs a departmental store in Kerala, said: "It was a difficult decision, but we had no choice. Doctors told us that it was necessary to go for a surgery as waiting would create more complications."

"We came all the way from Kerala for this. But now, we are very happy," he added.

"The kids have everything in common, they had same clinical features. We could only differentiate between them as Adhi cried a lot and Adhri remained calm and smiled a lot." B.S. Sharma of AIIMS added.