MELBOURNE, Nov. 13 (UPI) -- Final preparations were under way in Melbourne, Australia, for the separation of 2-year-old Bangladeshi orphans joined at the head, hospital officials say.
Sixteen doctors and nurses at Royal Children's Hospital were to perform what they see as the most complex operation ever undertaken in Australia, The Melbourne Herald-Sun reported Friday.
The team will start work at 8:30 a.m. Monday, Australian time, to split the blood vessels and sections of brain the sisters share.
There is a 25 percent chance the twins will die and a 50 percent chance they will suffer catastrophic brain damage, neurosurgeon Wirginia Maixner said.
Neurosurgeons expect to spend as long as eight hours separating the final connections inside the girls' skulls before plastic surgeon Andrew Greensmith and his team take over.
"It's not just a matter of separating and a simple closure, it is a significant plastic surgical reconstructive issues," Greensmith said.
