Parted Twin Has 2nd Surgery
Maria Teresa Quiej Alvarez, one of the formerly conjoined Guatemalan twins, underwent surgery lasting more than three hours Friday after doctors discovered a bacterial infection in the lining of her brain.
The surgery was the second for the 1-year-old since she was separated from her sister, Maria de Jesus, in a marathon operation at UCLA’s Mattel Children’s Hospital last week.
Hours after that separation, doctors returned her to the operating room to relieve pressure on the brain caused by a hematoma, a pooling of blood under the scalp.
Dr. Irwin Weiss said that blood collected around Maria Teresa’s brain during the initial separation and that much of it remains in the lining. The infection probably was caused by that excess blood, which doctors operated to remove, he said.
Nevertheless, Weiss said Friday’s procedure was only “a bump in the road” and did not change the girl’s serious but stable condition.
A ventilator, which had been removed Thursday, probably will be needed for the next few days, Weiss added.
Maria de Jesus has been breathing without aid since Tuesday and is alert, being fed through a baby bottle and sometimes laughing, Weiss said.
Her condition also is serious but stable.
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