Doctor: There’s hope twins can be separated

The top of one girl’s head is attached to the back of her sister’s.

DALLAS (AP) — There’s still a chance that 3-year-old twin girls born joined at the head in Italy can be separated, one of their doctors said Friday.

“The bottom line is there is hope,” said Dr. Kenneth Salyer, chairman and founder of the nonprofit World Craniofacial Foundation that brought them to Dallas to be evaluated for a possible surgery.

The girls attracted international attention in August when doctors in Ohio halted a separation surgery after deciding the procedure was too risky.

Salyer told The Associated Press that he had an emotional talk with their mother, and the girls will be sent to Dr. John Persing at Yale University for a consultation.

“There’s a number of possibilities,” Salyer said.

Tatiana and Anastasia Dogaru, who came to Dallas in October 2004, have spent the last several months in Ohio, where doctors at Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital in Cleveland had hoped to separate them. The surgery was called off over concerns about risks of infection and heart failure.

The top of Tatiana’s head is attached to the back of Anastasia’s, meaning the girls have never been able to look each other in the eye. Also, Anastasia, the bigger twin, has no kidney function and relies on Tatiana’s kidneys.

Even if they remain attached, their conjoined condition could lead to a variety of medical problems. Twins born joined at the head — known as craniopagus twins — occur in about one in 2.5 million births.

The girls were born in Rome to Romanian parents, Alin Dogaru, a Byzantine Catholic priest, and his wife, Claudia. The girls, their mother and older sister were back in Dallas this week to attend a fundraiser for the foundation.

They were guests of honor along with twins from Egypt who were successfully separated four years ago in Dallas. Ahmed and Mohamed Ibrahim, who were joined at the tops of their heads, will undergo two weeks of medical checkups during their stay in Dallas.

The foundation helps children who have deformities of the head or face by providing support and access to medical care.