The twins were sent to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) after the operation for special care and were breathing without the help of a respirator several hours later, officials at the No 251 Hospital of the People's Liberation Army in Zhangjiakou said.

The girls are being fed intravenously until their newly separated stomachs and livers get strong enough for them to eat and drink normally.

"The babies will be out of danger within 48 to 72 hours and can leave the hospital within a month if everything goes smoothly," said Zhang Quanliang, one of the chief surgeons. "But there is still the possibility that their incisions will get infected. Liver or kidney failure could throw them into great danger. We will try our best, but it mainly depends on the babies themselves."

If the twins survive, they will be able to grow up as normal, healthy children, according to charge nurse Qu Yanjing.

"We repaired their wounds with their own skin flaps instead of planted skin to ensure that the female babies' breasts and belly buttons would grow normally," she said. The twins' divided livers will regenerate thanks to the ability of the human body to repair itself.

The hospital did not charge the parents, who are farmers, and also promised to provide free follow-up treatment. A previous Siamese twin operation cost 600,000 yuan (US$73,000) in East China's Fujian Province.

The charge nurse also noted an interesting phenomenon: Before the operation one of the twins was thinner but ate more, while the other was fatter but ate less.

(China Daily August 23, 2002)