Headlines
The headline that caught my attention this morning was not the much-vaunted electoral success of the so-called ‘King of the North’ but the one about conjoined twins. Two Nigerian babies were successfully separated last year in the UAE. Mercy and Goodness were joined at the head and a team of medical professionals from more than twenty countries worked together to separate them.
The team used a variety of sophisticated techniques using AI and AR to prepare themselves for over forty hours of surgery, separating skulls, brains, and blood vessels.
Wikimedia informs that AR or augmented reality ”is a form of 3D human–computer interaction that overlays real-time 3D-rendered computer graphics into the real world through a display, such as a handheld device or head-mounted display.”
Mercy and Goodness made a full recovery from the complex, brilliant surgery and are now back home in Nigeria. The lead paedriatic surgeon from Great Ormond Street Hospital, (GOSH) Professor Noor ul Owase Jeelani said, ”This case involved a team split across three continents, helping children from a fourth … it is a beautiful example of how we can produce life-changing outcomes through global collaboration and knowledge-sharing: skill, technology and humanity coming together to defy all odds.”
Now, that is truly something to celebrate, and an example of cooperation we all could aspire to follow.
Very strongly connected twins, who I think were from Papua New Guinea, were successfully separated here, with I think a charity paying for the flights to and from Melbourne, accompanied by their mother, with the surgery and recovery paid for by our medical system. As you would expect, no one complained about the cost to the Australian taxpayers.
ReplyDeleteTruly amazing surgery benefits everyone, in one way or another. New techniques and strategies filter down into less complex procedures.
DeleteWhat we are able to do continues to be more and more amazing.
ReplyDeleteThere is no limit to exploration and discovery, in so many fields.
DeleteWow, amazing!
ReplyDeleteIt's pretty amazing.
ReplyDeleteIt's lovely to read about such a life-affirming story rather than headlines about the constant vileness that seems the norm in international relations at the moment.
ReplyDeleteIt's too easy to slip into an attitude that everything is vile, when it isn't. There is much good in the world, to counterbalance the bad.
DeleteI couldn't agree more with your last sentence, Janice. As a species, we could (and did) achieve so much, if only we put our energy to the good and helpful.
ReplyDeleteThere are people accomplishing great things - they just don't always receive the recognition and publicity,
DeleteLovely to get some uplifting news about human kindness than the other sort which dominates the headlines.
ReplyDeleteThat's how I felt, when I read it.
Deleteone of the things AI is doing that is good and all those people coming together is an amazing feat. thanks for sharing
ReplyDeleteUsed properly, AI can be of great benefit.
DeleteOne of the marvels of our shared humanity is to use all our intelligence to save the lives of others.
ReplyDeleteWe see cooperation in science, which can benefit all mankind.
DeleteWe can separate conjoined twins but apparently we cannot remove white backgrounds from text in our blogs! Highlight and press "Clear Formatting" on your Blogger Dashboard.
ReplyDelete😧
DeleteThis is so fascinating- Is there an update on how the babies are thriving. What an amazing team effort.
ReplyDeleteI am looking at updates.
DeleteIn my life I've known of several news articles about twins being separated. But it's been years since I've heard of a recent incident. It's marvelous that that's can be done safely.
ReplyDeleteIt's incredible work, and rare. Most conjoined twins don't survive pregnancy or labour.
DeleteThere is much that is good, kind, generous and a credit to gumanity in this world - it just doesn't make headlines as often as it deserves. If we seek it, it's not difficult to find. Thank you for sharing this good news item.
ReplyDeleteI believe that most people are decent and good. They just don't get the publicity.
DeleteWow, 40 hours of surgery. It's fascinating and amazing all the technical advances they've made in medicine. So many things they can do to.
ReplyDeleteThings that were unthinkable a decade ago are now accomplished. It's not easy but it can be done.
DeleteIt is heartening to see what we can accomplish amidst to low-level detritus that floods us.
ReplyDeleteExactly so.
DeleteIt's amazing what can be done. Fabulous news.
ReplyDelete😃
DeleteAlways good to hear good news
ReplyDeleteAlison in Devon x
Indeed it is. 😊
DeleteThanks for the great feel-good story to start the day
ReplyDeleteIt was lovely to read that this morning.
DeleteI remember the story and the one Andrew refers to, I'm always happy to read of such successes and medicine/surgery is one area where I don't mind AI being used.
ReplyDeleteQuite so.
Delete"King of the North" -- LOL!
ReplyDeleteI know. Ridiculous, isn't it?
DeleteThat really is an amazing story. It’s incredible to see how medical knowledge, technology, and people from different parts of the world can come together for something so life changing. Stories like this are a good reminder of what humanity can achieve when people work together.
ReplyDeleteIf only we could all work together more frequently and effectively . . .
DeleteThis was just the heartwarming story I needed this morning! Love those children's names.
ReplyDeleteLovely names to reflect their survival.
DeleteSuch a wonderful story about working together and sharing specialised knowledge to bring about this amazing success story. The girls have really lovely names that just seem to fit so well. I wish them the very best of health and a big thank you to the medical teams.
ReplyDelete😃
ReplyDeleteYes this is a great reason to celebrate.
ReplyDeleteIt must have been a strange world for them after they were separated.
DeleteDefinitely a great reason to celebrate.
ReplyDeleteAll the best Jan
Absolutely.
DeleteBrilliant....and brilliantly beautiful. May mercy and goodness always follow Mercy and Goodness.
ReplyDeleteAmen to that.
DeleteThis is absolutely incredible. At a time when sigh... things don't look great in the world, this story is so very heartwarming and hopeful.
ReplyDeleteIt's good to hear of positive things and to know that there are good, honest people in the world.
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