Conjoined Twins

Neurosurgeon Dr. John Frazee consults the diagnostic test images of conjoined twins Maria de Jesus and Maria Teresa Quiej-Alvarez during a risky 22-hour procedure to separate the girls Monday, Aug. 5, 2002, at UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles.

Setting Up

Surgical instruments are organized in the operating room during the procedure to separate the twins.

A Baby's Eyes

Maria de Jesus Alvarez watches as the anesthesiology team at the University of California at Los Angeles Medical Center prepares her and her conjoined twin for surgery.

Into The O.R.

Chief anesthesiologist Dr. Barbara Van De Wiele, center, escorts the twins to the operating room.

First Time Apart

Formerly conjoined twins Maria de Jesus,left, and Maria Teresa Quiej-Alvarez rest in separate beds for the first time in the pediatric intensive care unit at UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2002, after enduring a 22-hour procedure.

Another Surgery

Nurse Michelle Murray, left, tends to Maria Teresa after the infant was returned to the pediatric intensive care unit following a surgery to remove a subdural hematoma Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2002. The infant had the second surgery after the procedure to separate her from her twin.

Grateful Parents

Wenceslao Quiej Lopez, second from left, and his wife Alba Leticia Alvarez, parents of conjoined twin girls who were separated in a 22-hour operation, thank UCLA medical staff for their work, during a news conference Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2002.

Grandparents At Home

Loida, left, and Wenseslao Quiej, grandparents of the twins, speak to newspeople in their home in the small town of Belen, about 105 miles south of Guatemala City, Wednesday, Aug. 7. Hiding between his parents is their son, Elmer.

The Surgical Team

Members of the UCLA's Mattel Children's Hospital surgical team that succesfully separated the Guatemalan conjoined twins: foreground left to right: Dr. Henry Kamamoto, lead plastic and reconstructive surgeon, Dr. Jorge Lazareff, lead neurosurgeon, and Dr. Barbara Van De Wiele, lead coordinator anesthesiologist.