The recovering of separated conjoined twin girls is going better than expected, and both girls will return to their mother in Shanxi Province on Wednesday, hospital officials say.

Wu Xinchen and Wu Xinyue have been moved from the hospital's intensive care unit to an ordinary inpatient ward two weeks after delicate separation surgery performed on June 1.

In Room 701 of the Paediatric Inpatient Building at Xinhua Hospital, the two sisters are recovering in beds No 2 and No 3. No supporting medical devices are now needed to help them stay alive.

"They need no more medicine because both girls have fully recovered from the separation and have each gained more than 1 kilogram in weight.

"All of the indications are good, including heart beat, blood pressure, respiratory systems, and there have been no infections or other complications since separation," said Professor Jin Huiming, vice-director of the Paediatric Surgery Department at the hospital.

Regarding their physical conditions, Xinchen and Xinyue could have been discharged from hospital earlier but, due to the long distance from home to Shanghai, doctors have had them stay in hospital for one more week.

The twins, born on March 17, were connected from chest to navel. They have their own organs, but their breastbone, some heart tissue and some liver tissue were connected.

Xinhua Hospital, a pioneer in this area, has given the twins free surgery because of the family's poor financial situation. The hospital will also give the twins a special send-off celebration on Wednesday.

Doctors say they expect the pair to grow as normal children, although they will have some scars. However, Xinchen needs a further ultrasound check in a few months' time because of a small defect in her heart, which might disappear as she grows, according to doctors.

Nursing staff said both baby girls had pretty good appetites and were sleeping soundly.

"The care they need is no more than that for healthy newborns. They are fed milk and water, get their diapers changed and are bathed," said nurse Wu Yin.

During the first few days after separation, nutrition was drip fed into the babies to accelerate recovery. Since the mother has not accompanied with twins to Shanghai, they later started to drink formula milk.

"We feed them milk every three hours. Sometimes, they cry for more," said Gu Ailan, a nurse who prepares food for the twin sisters.

She added that Xinchen is sometimes naughty and cries because she wants to be carried several times a day, while Xinyue is quieter.

Since 1982, Xinhua Hospital has performed six operations to separate conjoined twins.

"We could say this one was the most successfully because both girls were in good physical condition when they went into surgery, which is very rare with such twins. The success is also due to our thorough care program," said Jin.

(China Daily June 20, 2005)