Modern Miracles: Gemini Untwined Separates Conjoined Twins

This week we want to highlight the incredible story of Brazilian twins conjoined at the head, who were separated in a groundbreaking surgery that involved virtual reality.

According to the BBC, three-year-old twins, Bernardo and Arthur Lima were separated throughout seven surgeries, and the final procedure took 27 hours. The surgeons and doctors used virtual reality to “practice” the surgeries on scans of the boys’ heads. The surgery happened in Brazil. with assistance from doctors in London over the same VR technology.

The surgery was organized by Gemini Untwined, a charity that aims to “defy the odds” and separate “craniopagus” twins, who are conjoined at the head and brain. The best craniofacial surgeons around the globe have been providing care since 2006, but the charity has been formally operational since 2018.

With technological advancements like virtual reality and a dedicated team of world-class specialists, amazing things can happen!

Stock cover photo by Jellke Vanooteghem, from Unsplash

Clinical Considerations, In the News

August 10, 2022

Joan Vaughn

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Written by Joan Vaughn

I’m Joan, and I know home care from the inside out. I’ve navigated my daughter through 24/7 home care nursing and managed her PCA’s. I’ve helped my parents move into (and out of) assisted living, Medicare episodes, skilled nurse visits, home health aids, and PCAs. Sandwiched in all of that, I’ve helped coordinate home care equipment and supplies, physical therapists, occupational therapists, county workers, and medications (oh, the medications). I know emergency departments, children’s hospitals, cancer wards, cardiac floors, and specialty units. I can recite health insurance policies (and call their bluff). I know a lot of other things in life too, like Shakespeare, where to sit to see a great sunset over a lake, how to keep myself healthy, how to read a profit/loss statement and state statutes, when to use a comma, and that gratitude is one of the keys to success. So I’m going to have this blog and write about home care from time to time. I’ll include topics like current legislation, professional boundaries in a tricky environment, and being a caregiver. I’ll also post some guest blogs from clients and nurses. Join me in the conversation.

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