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Bandung. Doctors at Bandung’s Hasan Sadikin Hospital are treating the second set of conjoined twins brought there this year, as plans advance to separate the first pair.

The twin girls, who were born on Tuesday at Majalaya General Hospital, outside Bandung, and brought to Hasan Sadikin (RSHS), are joined at the torso.

Hospital director Bayu Wahyudi said over the weekend that the babies were in weak condition and had to be hooked up to a breathing apparatus. He also said they were showing signs of a lung infection .

“We’ve put the babies on a regimen of antibiotics because of suspected lung problems,” he said.

The babies, born by caesarian section, have two pairs of arms and legs and two heads, one of which already has teeth growing. However, Bayu said sonograms showed the babies shared the same set of lungs, a liver, heart and kidneys.

He added the hospital had put together a special team to handle the babies.

“As of now we’re still carrying out thorough observations and checks while we evaluate the prospects of further action that we can take,” he said.

The hospital has not released any pictures of the babies or revealed their or their parents’ names. The latter, identified only as residents of Karyalaksana village, have declined to speak to reporters.

Ahmad, head of the Bandung Health Agency, said all hospital costs in the case would be paid by the state because the parents were covered by the Jamkesmas scheme, a s t ate-sponsored health insurance program for the poor.

He added that the birth of the conjoined twins was a very rare event.

“It happens in just one out of every 200,000 births,” he said.

The other pair of conjoined twins at the hospital will soon undergo an operation to separate them.

The 1-year-old twins, named Wanda and Wandi, are joined at the abdomen but each have their own set of internal organs.

Earlier this month, Bayu said the hospital had launched a tender for the procurement of the specialized equipment needed for the operation, which could take place as early as late November.