The Michigan Daily-Thursday, May 31, 1979-Page 5 FIRST TIME FOR BRAIN SEPARA TION: Link between Siamese twins severed SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - Doctors severed a small connection between the brains of Siamese twins Lisa and Elisa Hansen during a sixteen-and-one-half- hour operation to separate the girls, their doctor said yesterday. Dr. Stephen Minton said the 19- month-old twins were in "critical but stable condition" yesterday, as they were when surgery ended at 3:05 a.m. He said a small connection between the sisters' brains was severed by surgeons during the marathon operation. Previously, doctors had said the twins' brains were separate, although linked by shared blood vessels. MINTON SAID neurosurgeons separated the brains - linked at a small spot at the back of the head - without difficulty, adding it was too early to tell if either girl suffered brain damage. Working in shifts through the evening, teams of surgeons. - neurosurgeons, plastic surgeons, anasthesiologists, and pediatricians - cut through skin and skull and tied off blood vessels the girls had shared all their lives. The girls' brains were separate, although touching. They had shared veins carrying blood away from the brains. LISA AND ELISA were perfectly normal, both physically and mentally, except for their being attached, doctors said. "I love them. I want them to be per- fectly normal," said Minton of the girls, daughters of David and Patricia Han- sen of Ogden, Utah. He said the next days and weeks will be critical for the twins, born joined at the top of their heads. THE GIRLS tolerated the risky surgery well, the doctor said, but "there are many things which could go wrong" - including infection and bleeding. Doctors used magnifying lenses, strapped to their foreheads to work on the tiny blood vessels, he said. During the operation, two surgical tables were pushed together for the babies. Minton described the feeling in the Utah Medical Center operating room at the moment of separation. "THE GIRLS are like members of our own family. There was an exhilarating feeling of accomplish- ment. I was extremely excited at that moment." The girls are in the hospital's inten- sive care unit - in separate beds for the first time in their lives. During the day, medical center spokesman John Dwan said they were "moving and laughing. They're okay." The twins' parents were in seclusion yesterday, but the sisters' uncle repor- ted, "Boy, are they happy !" "WE'RE ALL happy," said the uncle, Paul Hansen,.19. "It's a medical first and we're privileged to be part of it." He quoted the twins' father as saying, "We're relieved and the Lord has an- swered our prayers. We've been hoping SIAMESE TWINS Lisa and Elisa Hansen underwent a 16-hour operation that ended yesterday and separated the tops of their heads. The 19-month-old twins are in the Intensive Care Unit of the University of Utah Medical Center. and praying for this day. It's a miracle, a dream come true." At 3:05 a.m., as the girls were being brought out of their deep sleep and ushered to the intensive care unit, Elisa cried out, said Dwan, who watched part of the operation. "ALL OF A SUDDEN little Elisa, her arms swung out and she - 'Waaaa' - she cried," he said. "There were smiles and drooping shoulders and the doctors relaxed." Dwan compared the operation to a ballet - "absolutely incredible to wat- ch." He said the operating room was noisy with up to 11 doctors working at one time. Other attempts to separate such twins have ended in death or severe mental retardation, said Minton. Total and successful separation had never been accomplished on twins joined in such a manner, he added. "IT'S BEEN A long, long time," said Paul Hansen. "So many operations and so many times in the hospital. There'st still a lot to do, but the big part is over. Our prayers were answered." He said Lisa and Elisa still face long periods of additional hospitalization, "primarily for plastic surgery." However, he said it has been the parents' wish all along that separation be attempted so the girls could live normal lives. "IT'S GOING TO be quite something .holding them again," he laughed. If you want to dine with espirit, The League is the best place to be: Its prices are right The foods' a delight So come with your friends and just see. E.D.S. CAFETERIA HOURS; 7:15-4:00 5:00-7:15 Snack Bar Closed for Summer Send your League Limerick to: TheMichigan Manager, Michigan League 227 South Ingalls Next to Hill Auditorium You will receive 2 free dinner Located in the heart ot the campus, tickets it your limerick is used in it is the heart - the campus one ot our ads ANN ARBOR CIVIC THEATRE Proudly presents THE TONYAWARD WINNING MUSICAL 0000 00000000 00 00000000 0 Stephen Sondheim's 0 0 0 O O Book by James Goldman10 First time in this area May 31, June 1-3, 1979 CONTACT LENSES soft and hard* contact lenses $210.00 includes exam, fitting, dispensing, follow-up visits, starter kits, and 6 month checkup. * includes a second pair of hard lenses Dr. Paul C. Uslan, Optometrist 545 Church Stree 769-1222 by appointment Power Center Box Office open daily 12pm--763-3333 tErCLEIE at Power Center 5d 5.50 s. 50 s 4 g.50 8.50 8.50 3 SO g.50 8.50 8.50 55 2.50 SSO STAGE