East Region: Conjoined twins die en route to Y’de for separation.

The conjoined twins died in Bertoua en route to Yaounde for separation. The death comes after the Minister of Public Health, Dr Manaouda Malachie, ordered their evacuation to Yaounde for operation.

The operation had been programmed at the Yaounde Gynaeco-Obstetric and Pediatric Hospital. The death of the conjoined twins was confirmed by Minister Manaouda, in a tweet on the social media platform X, formerly known as twitter, yesterday.

The member of government extended condolences to the parents of the deceased twins. Their death, Dr Manaouda said, comes after government had mobilised experts to take care of the operation.

The babies were said to be joined at the level of the chest. They had two heads, four hands and two legs. Sources are quoted as having narrated that after several checks and scans were carried out, pending their evacuation, the kids gave up the ghost.

In Cameroon, there have been reports of the birth of several conjoined twins. Some have been separated upon successfully within and without the country. The birth of conjoined twins still remains a mystery to many.

Many are of the opinion that the situation is more mystical than natural. Many people still link the birth of conjoined twins to witchcraft and evil spirits. Some even go as far as saying if one laughs at a person with disability, he/she will give birth to conjoined twins or a child with disability.

According to the Worldwide Collaborative Epidemiological Study of the International Clearinghouse for Birth Defects Surveillance and Research, conjoined twins are a rare development accident of uncertain etiology. 

Going by medical experts, conjoined twins require a surgical operation to be born. Babies, they also say, are most likely to be born prematurely with severe health issues not excluding breathing, if they are conjoined.