Doctors in north China's Hebei Province have successfully performed a heart surgery on a six-month-old baby girl, the younger of a set of Siamese twins who were separated in February shortly after birth.

The two-and-a-half-hour meticulous surgery, done on Wednesday by doctors with the No. 1 Hospital of Hebei Medical University, aimed to remedy Bei Bei's congenital heart disease that had remained a concern after her separation from her twin sister Bao Bao.

Doctors say Bei Bei's life would remain critical if another operation was not performed to correct the disease, which had affected Bei Bei's physical growth.

Bei Bei weighs 6.4 kg, underweight for her age, and often suffers from infections in the respiratory and digestive systems.

"We waited until she recovered fully from the initial separation to minimize risks," said Prof. Zhang Yuping who took charge of the heart surgery.

Still, Prof. Zhang noted it was both hard and risky to operate on the baby as an ideal age for such a complicated operation should be at least two years old. "But we cannot wait that long -- many babies die of the disease before they reach the age," he acknowledged.

The operation, however, turned out to be a success, according to Zhang. Bei Bei is now in normal condition and is receiving further treatment at an intensive care unit.

Earlier report said Bei Bei and Bao Bao were born joined at the chest and abdomen and were separated on Valentine's Day when they were 44 days old.

Both operations were performed free of charge. according to a source with the hospital.

China has reported a total of 27 sets of Siamese twins since new China was founded in 1949, and 15 pairs of them have undergone separation operations.

(Xinhua News Agency July 9, 2004)