Two-headed baby surgery 'success'

An 18-strong team operated on seven-week-old Rebeca Martinez for 11 hours, in a complex procedure, believed to be the first of its kind.

Rebeca had the live head of an undeveloped conjoined twin fused to the top of her skull.

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Dr Santiago Hazim, head of the hospital where the surgery was carried out, said Rebeca was "doing great".

"The surgery is over and her head has been closed," he said.

In the delicate life-or-death operation, surgeons had to cut off undeveloped tissue, clip the veins and arteries and close Rebeca's skull using a bone graft from another part of her body.

Rebeca is thought to be the first baby with her condition to survive beyond birth.

Rebeca's father, Franklin Martinez, said he was delighted at the outcome

"We are super happy. This is what we hoped for and it happened," he said.

Her second head had a partially-developed brain, ears, eyes and lips, and if it continued to grow it would have prevented Rebeca's brain from developing.

The features on the second head reportedly moved when Rebeca was being breast-fed.

Before the operation began, her parents, Franklin Martinez and Maria Gisela Hiciano held hands and placed their other hand on their daughter.

"Be strong, Rebeca. May God be with you," said Maria.

Dr Jorge Lazareff, director of Paediatric Neurosurgery at UCLA's Mattel Children's Hospital, said the head on top was growing faster than the lower one.