Parents of separated conjoined twins grateful for support

Thirty-one-year-old Fikile Mbuyisa briefed the media at the Nkosi Albert Luthuli Hospital in Durban yesterday. 

Mbuyisa gave birth to the twins at her home in October.

They were flown to the hospital shortly afterwards and separated in a marathon operation a week ago. 

Chief specialist for neonatal medicine, Dr Harshavadan Mackanjee, says he was told the mother had been rejected by the community.

"The mother was intimately involved with this. She was, unfortunately, ostracized by her community, but we did give her the type of support that she needed. And I think that she, in the end, accepted that number one, the kids are going to be separated," he said.

Meanwhile, Mbuyisa says she is grateful for all the support she and her husband received from the medical teams.

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"They've treated me and my children well; they've given us love. We don't have parents, and they've become my parents as well. I want to thank the doctor - he's helped me so much," she said.

One of the twins is currently on life support, while her sister has started breathing on her own.