JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – After a year in treatment, a formerly conjoined twin waved goodbye to doctors and nurses on Wednesday, headed to spend his first days at home with his parents in Florida. Mother Michelle Brantley said the boy’s brother was still being treated at Wolfson Children’s Hospital.

Conner and Carter were born in December 2014 conjoined along the abdomen and shared a small intestine, as well as fused livers. Ever since, the little boys had been going through a large number of surgeries to survive. Last May, they went through a 12-hour surgery after which they were separated, according to Nemours Children’s Specialty Care.

Conner Mirabal (left) was discharged from Wolfson Children's Hospital in Jacksonville, Florida, on Wednesday, following the surgery in December 2014, while Carter (right) has 'a way to go'. Credit: The Daily Mail UK
Conner Mirabal (left) was discharged from Wolfson Children’s Hospital in Jacksonville, Florida, on Wednesday, following the surgery in December 2014, while Carter (right) has ‘a way to go’. Credit: The Daily Mail UK

Father Bryan Mirabal expressed in a press conference on Wednesday he couldn’t wait to spend time with one of his sons away from the hospital. “It’s teaching time”, Mirabal said he was anxious to teach Conner about dogs and cars. “That’s the fun part, getting to be a dad.”

At least 200 health care professionals had been taking care of Conner and Carter since he was born. It will certainly be a whole new adventure for him to discover the outside world while being cared for by his own family 24 hours a day.

The 13-month old Conner had to say goodbye to his brother for the first time, after playing with him for a while. According to their father, Carter started crying when he saw Conner. They were grabbing each other’s hands and Conner was smiling at his brother.

Brantley commented he wasn’t sure whether his sons actually understood they were brothers, but he said they would eventually get to that point. Michelle said Carter was doing fine, though he has had a slower recovery and remains at the hospital.

Dr. Daniel Robie, a surgeon with Nemours Children’s Specialty Care and pediatric surgeon at Wolfson Children’s Hospital, said he and his medical team had been able to see Conner every day for more than a year and that they were going to miss him, but he still remarked the boy was going to the place he belonged to: at home with his parents.

Even though Conner is just 13 months old, he was waving at the medical staff from his car seat as he was about to go home.

Source: ABC News