http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,10583467%5E29677,00.html Chances 'slim' for survival of two-headed baby From AFP August 27, 2004 AN Afghan woman has given birth in Iran to twin boys whose heads share the same body, doctors said today. The babies stood little chance of survival, they added. "I've seen twin attached by the head or stomach but never a baby with two heads," a female doctor at the Ghaem hospital in the north-western city of Mashhad told AFP by telephone. "Sometimes one head cries, while the other sleeps," she added. "For the time being the baby is fine, but the chances of survival are low. In such cases there is too much strain on the heart," lamented the doctor, who was working in the intensive care ward where the twins had been placed. The mother has been identified as a 45-year-old Afghan, Najmeh Wahedian. The doctor said the heavily conjoined twins, born late on Tuesday in a caesarian section and weighing 4.3kg, has not yet been given a name or names. The twins, currently in intensive care and dependent on oxygen, are reportedly the eighth and ninth children of the woman. Photos show an apparently normal torso with two separate heads cramped together on the shoulders. Medical officials said tests have revealed the baby has two functioning brains, each one controlling its respective side of the body. In addition, the single torso is said to contain two hearts and two spinal cords. Hospital staff said they have been inundated with calls and visits since the birth. In July 2003, Iran was plunged into mourning after Ladan and Laleh Bijani, 29-year-old Iranian women fused at the head since birth, died during a daring operation in Singapore aimed at separating them.
This isn't the first time. I can't believe no one here has heard of Abigail and Brittany Hensel. http://phreeque.tripod.com/hensel_sisters.html
Am I the only one who thought "That's sick" upon seeing this picture? If so, does that make me a bad person? The story does bring up so many interesting questions, however. For instance, do the two heads necessarily represent two different people? If each brain controls it's respective side of the body, wouldn't that mean that between them, they have one mind? Which would lead me to think of them as one person. Oh well, I don't know enough about the workings of the human mind/body to comment.
Two heads --> two people. The brains are still separate. Looking at the story of the Hensel sisters, there are obviously two kids in there. There are some body parts they both control and they probably just learn to move in sync with each other. Looks a little unusual, of course... but just another case of having to get used to the fact that some people are different. I appreciate the efforts the parents go through to give these kids the best life they can.
