Separating Twins

This PBS-aired NOVA special from filmmaker Ben Shackleford takes a rare look at the delicate and dangerous surgical procedure of separating Siamese twins. Joined at the head (the rarest of rarities), Bangladeshi-born Trisha and Krishna were abandoned to an orphanage by their poor parents but later rescued and sent to Australia for surgery, with the help of surrogate mother Moira Kelly and a wealthy Bangladeshi co-guardian. At first the prospect of the twins' survival seems slim, as the surgical procedure will enter uncharted territory in medical history: the conjoined pair will have each of their brains separated blood vessel by blood vessel, in an arduous process that takes over two years. After some close calls and near death moments, the final surgery takes 32 hours and is full of complications. Separating Twins is a wrenching true medical drama with dense technical information presented in an accessible manner and plenty of twists and turns that will keep viewers uncertain right down to the last few minutes. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (M. Sandlin)