The Anniston Star from Anniston, Alabama • Page 3

Anniston Star Associated Press Doctors speak during a news conference regarding the successful separation of conjoined Egyptian twins, Ahmed and Mohamed Ibrahim, at Children's Medical Center Dallas Egyptian conjoined twins are separated successfully By Jamie Stengle Associated Press DALLAS Two-year-old Egyptian twins joined at the top of their heads were successfully separated Sunday, but face a long recovery after the marathon surgery that began a day earlier and that took more than a year of planning. News of the successful separation of Ahmed and Mohamed Ibrahim overjoyed their parents, surgeons and caregivers. "At one point when someone came up and said you have two boys, the father jumped to my neck and he hugged me and he fainted and I cared for him," said Dr. Nasser Abdel Al, who was one of the twins' doctors in Egypt. "The mother on the other hand was crying like everybody else.

She was there thanking everybody around and thanking her faith that brought her to this great place Dallas, Texas." As surgeons worked to finish closing the boys' head wounds, part of the medical team at Children's Medical Center Dallas talked Sunday about the successful completion of the surgery. Ahmed and Mohamed, who had an intricate connection of blood vessels but separate brains, were physically separated about 26 hours after they entered the operating room. Doctors then went to work covering the head wounds. The entire surgery took 34 hours. OBITUARIES Brodeur Service for Leonard A.

Brodeur, 76. of Anniston will be announced by Chapel Hill Funeral Home Crematory. Mr. Brodeur died yesterday at Northeast Alabama Regional Medical Center. Bryant SYLACAUGA Services for Annie M.

Bryant, 87, of Sylacauga will be held Tuesday at 2 p.m. at Chapel Hill Funeral Home Crematory with the Rev. Todd Reaves officiating. Burial will be in Forestlawn Gardens with Chapel Hill Funeral Home Crematory in charge. Family will receive friends 10-11 a.m.

Tuesday at the funeral home. Mrs. Bryant died Saturday at Sylacauga Health Care. Survivors include her two sons and their wives, Lamar and Lena Bryant of Sylacauga, Gerald and Mable Bryant of Pensacola, two sisters, Caterina McCullars of Gadsden, and Vansilina Carmack of Pensacola, five grandchildren; and 12 great-grandchildren. Mrs.

Bryant, a native of Clay County, was a resident of Anniston for 21 years, of Weaver for 37 years and of Sylacauga for the last eight years. She was a Methodist. She was preceded in death by her husband, Felix Bryant, and a son, James Edward Bryant. Bullard TALLADEGA Services for Bertie L. Bullard, 65, of Talladega will be announced by Usery Funeral Home.

Mrs. Bullard died yesterday at Citizens Baptist Hospital in Talladega. Hanner LINEVILLE Services for Gertrude Hanner, 78, of Lineville, will be held today at 2 p.m. at Benefield Funeral Home Chapel with the Rev. Hillman Burt officiating.

Burial will follow in Lineville. City Cemetery. Mrs. Hanner died Saturday at Clay County Hospital. Survivors include her four sisters, Maudine Brooks and Eloise Wakefield, both of LaGrange, Ida Mae Kerr of Ashland and Thelma Bradley of Calhoun, one brother, Pettus of Griffin, and several nieces and nephews.

Pallbearers will be Harvey Hanner, Brad Powell, Pobby Kerr, Mike Kerr, Bill Kerr and Russ Kerr. Honorary pallbearers will be nieces and nephews. Mrs. Hanner, a native and lifelong resident of Clay County, was retired from Higgins Manufacturing Co. and was a Baptist.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Winford Harvel Hanner, a brother, Albie Pettus, and three sisters, Fannie Jean Kerr, Lorene McDonald and Minnie Pearl Maddox. Lett OXFORD Services for Annie G. Lett, 97, of Oxford will be Wednesday at Monday, October 13, 2003 Page 3A Stomach pacemaker could suppress appetite By Daniel Q. Haney drugs. Researchers Sunday pre- and is similar to a cardiac pace- in their excess weight.

Associated Press sented preliminary data on the maker. But instead of stimulating "The results are promising, usefulness of the approach, the heart, this one is attached to although we still have a long way FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. which has already been tested on the wall of the stomach and is to go," said Dr. Scott Shikora. "I A kind of pacemaker for the 450 people to show its safety.

intended to reduce feelings of believe in my heart this is a very tummy, an implanted electrical Surgical techniques that hunger. exciting breakthrough in our device that fools the body into shrink the stomach and reroute The researchers implanted the field." feeling full, appears to be an the digestive tract are the only devices in 30 obese women and Shikora, head of bariatric effective alternative to radical highly reliable way to make men whose average weight was surgery at Tufts-New England digestive surgery for helping obese people lose weight. 242 pounds. Their average body Medical Center in Boston, preobese people shed large amounts However, this is major surgery mass index, or BMI, was 42. The sented the study in Fort of weight.

that carries significant risk, healthy cutoff for the height-to- Lauderdale at the annual scientifIf it proves out in larger stud- including a 1 percent chance of weight ratio is 25; 30 is consid- ic meeting of the American ies, the experimental device death, and researchers are search- ered obese. Association for the Study of could offer a new way to help ing for ways to do the job more After a year with the Obesity. It was financed by the very large people slim down safely. implant, two-thirds of the vol- device's developer, when they cannot lose weight on The new device is called an unteers had lost weight. The Transneuronix Inc.

of Mt. diets or with appetite-suppressing implantable gastric stimulator average was an 18 percent drop Arlington, N.J. Columbia's medical center target of lab animal probe By David Crary alive. It is the subject of investigations by two ing threatening -mail, apparently from one Associated Press federal agencies, and activists are seeking of the veterinarian's supporters. punitive action against the medical center.

"Columbia doesn't claim to be perfect, but NEW YORK Dell'Orto has left the university, contend- we try to be as close as humanly possibly," A whistleblowing veterinarian has entan- ing she was shunned after speaking up, but said Dr. Harvey Colten, the medical center's gled Columbia University's prestigious med- she continues to press her cause. associate dean for research. ical center in a protracted dispute after alleg- Columbia has implemented reforms based "The extent to which some of these issues ing that baboons and other lab animals suf- on some of her complaints, but backed by have continued, that's distracting," he told fered from cruel or negligent treatment. federal investigators has concluded that The Associated Press.

"But in no way do we A year after veterinarian Catherine other allegations were baseless. The universi- find it a problem to have the initial complaint Dell'Orto complained to senior medical cen- ty says one researcher Dell'Orto complained raised we want people to come forward if ter officials, the case remains very much about has halted his experiments after receiv- they think there are problems." 11 a.m. at the Iron City Baptist Church with Miller Funeral Home in charge. The family will receive friends on Tuesday from 4-7 p.m. at the funeral home.

Mrs. Lett died yesterday at Beverly Health Care. McMeekin GAYLESVILLE Services for Shirley Ruth McMeekin, 71, of Gaylesville, will be 2 p.m. Tuesday at Perry Funeral Home Chapel. Burial will follow in Weiss Lake Memory Gardens with Perry Funeral Home in charge.

The family will receive friends 6-8 p.m. today. Mrs. McMeekin died Saturday at Cherokee Baptist Medical Center. Survivors include two sons and their wives, Rickie and Lorraine Shoemaker of Leesburg, and James and Paul McMeekin of Cedar Bluff; three daughters and their husbands, Denise and Tony Dupree of Leesburg, Stacy and Randal McMeekin of Cedar Bluff, and Judy Owens of three brothers, Joe Warner of Illinois, Don Altoona, and Tiny Warner of Chicago; a daughter, Rose Marie Keagy of Duncansville, 12 grandchildren; two great-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.

Mrs. McMeekin was a native of Pennsylvania. She was preceded in death by her parents, Elwood and Myra Mitchell Warner. Norton OXFORD Services for Arvie M. Norton, 87, of Oxford, will be Wednesday at First Baptist Church Oxford.

Burial will be at Forestlawn Gardens with Miller Funeral Home in charge. The family will receive friends 5-8 p.m. Tuesday at the funeral home. Mrs. Norton died yesterday at National Health Care in Golden Springs.

Wood Services for Rev. Lee Thomas Wood, 29, of Anniston, will be today at 7 p.m. at Chapel Hill Funeral Home Crematory with the Rev. Bobby Maye officiating. Burial will be in Maple Grove Cemetery with Chapel Hill Funeral Home Crematory in charge.

The family will receive friends from 6-7 p.m. today at the funeral home. Rev. Wood died yesterday at his residence. Survivors include his two sisters, Nora Wood of Anniston, and Sandra Graham of Kitzingen, Germany; and two nieces, Krystal O'Neal and Devlyn Williams.

Rev. Wood, a lifelong resident of Calhoun County, was a Baptist and former employee of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alabama. He was a member of St. Regis Mohawk Reservation, a Jerry Falwell-ordained ministry, and the National Rifle Association. He was preceded in death by his mother, Katherine Wood; and a brother, Howard Wood, Jr.

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