PHILADELPHIA — Recently, twin brothers born conjoined rejoiced in celebrating their first birthday after a successful surgery to separate them.
Amari and Javar Ruffin were born through a cesarean section on September 29, 2023, to a family residing in Philadelphia. At birth, the twins shared parts of their sternum, diaphragm, and abdominal wall along with their liver, with a combined weight of 6 pounds.
On August 21, a dedicated surgical team at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, composed of over two dozen specialists including surgeons, anesthesiologists, and nurses, undertook an intricate eight-hour procedure to separate the boys. The procedure involved meticulously closing and reconstructing their abdomens using advanced techniques involving mesh and plastic surgery methods.
The Ruffin family welcomed the twins home the following Tuesday, reuniting them with their parents, Tim and Shaneka, along with their older siblings, Kaylum and Anora. Shaneka expressed her overwhelming joy stating, “Seeing them each in their own beds was an indescribable feeling. It truly feels like we are starting a new chapter as a family of six, and we are incredibly thankful to CHOP for making this day a reality and allowing us to embark on this next journey.”
The couple discovered the twins were conjoined through a routine ultrasound conducted 12 weeks into the pregnancy. Shaneka recalled being advised to consider terminating the pregnancy, but they sought a second opinion. The hospital assured them that while the condition was indeed rare, separation was a viable option.
Conjoined twins occur in approximately 1 in every 35,000 to 80,000 births, and the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia is among a select few establishments across the United States that possess specialized skills in performing such separations.
