US surgeons have separated year-old Guatemalan twins joined at the head after a risky operation that took about 20 hours.
Officials at Mattel Children's Hospital at the University of California, said doctors are still in surgery but that the separation is complete.
The surgery on Maria Teresa and Maria de Jesus Quiej-Alvarez began yesterday, about six hours after they were wheeled into the operating theatre. The riskiest part of the surgery was expected to be separating the veins that connect the girl's heads.
Dr Houman Hemmati, who assisted in the surgery in Los Angeles, said the separation appears to be successful.
"It was more than optimistic, it was overjoyed and we can't wait 'til we see these kids playing, laughing, crying like normal baby children," he said. "There was absolutely no major trouble that was unforeseen in this procedure".
He said one of the girls was losing a lot of blood but she was given transfusions and "everything looks great".
The girls, born in rural Guatemala, were attached at the top of the skull and face opposite directions. Cases like theirs occur in fewer than one in one million live births.
Healing the Children, a non-profit group, arranged to bring the sisters from Guatemala to Los Angeles for the £1 million operation.
PA