Paul9989

8 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

So... a 'tooth pull'..  my guess is that a half decent place will charge about 1500 baht (pure guess - but that could be about ball park).

I would say that's correct, right in that range. If it is a wisdom tooth though, and it's impacted, then maybe it's a bit more. And if you have to return for a follow up visit after the tooth has been pulled then they might charge a bit extra for the follow up visits. I'm assuming no more than 2,500-3,000 Baht. 

3 hours ago, Jingthing said:

Bangkok Bank minimum is 50,000 baht. 

You must pay your monthly bill on that or pay high interest.

About 6 months ago I spoke with both BBL and KTC Card and both of them told me minimum was 10,000 Baht. Maybe that's changed at BBL now, but I doubt it's 50,000. 

3 hours ago, Photoguy21 said:

Use your ATM/Debit Card for payments, a lot easier and no messing around.

Debit cards aren't accepted in some places in Thailand, only credit cards. 7-11 is a good example. 

1 hour ago, DonniePeverley said:

I noticed how some banks advertised 'gift card' type credits, but when you ask in the branch they say they've never heard of them and 'not have'. 

 

But with the country becoming increasingly digital, and also i would prefer the convenience of having my deliveries just left at my condo rather than having to pay cash, i need some form of digital card. 

 

Any help ?

Prepaid credit cards don’t exist in Thailand. Something like Vanilla Gift Credit Cards only exist in the USA and can’t be used for purchases outside the USA. 

If you want a Thai credit card, you can get a secured credit card from either Bangkok Bank or KTC Card. What you do is you put ฿10,000 or ฿20,000 into a locked bank account with them and then they give you a credit card with a credit limit equal to the amount of money that you put on deposit into the locked account. Any foreigner can get one. No credit background check required. Just put the money in the bank and they give you the card.

vitacost.com

They have been in business for 30 years. The best I’ve found. Items arrive within 2 weeks. The carry all

the major brands. I like the brand NOW for their high quality and good prices. Many good prices on their own vitacost house brand products too. They also often provide discount codes via email for 10%/15%/20% discounts. Shipping is a flat fee to Thailand of $13 up to 3.6 pounds in product weight. I keep orders under around $50 (including shipping fee) and have never been hit with any import duties. 

2 hours ago, Sheryl said:

 

None of the above tests are suitable for screening purposes  and no public health authority recommends them. They are highly nonspecific and often elevated for reasons other than cancer. The misuse of these tests for screening (common in Thai private hospital check up packages) leads to a lot of other unnecessary tests.

 

For colorectal cancer, colonoscopy is highly effective not only for early cancer detection but also prevention as pre-cancerous polyps can be removed during the procedure.

 

I disagree. The tests are useful to create a baseline. So, if test results suddenly change from one year to the next, then it could be a sign of something more serious. Just like the PSA test that sometimes indicates a false positive for prostate cancer, but still considered a useful screening test. Although sometimes considered nonspecific, all of them can also be very specific, which is why they are still considered useful. 
 

Yes, a colonoscopy should also be done every 5 years in men starting at the age of 45, and for the exact 2 reasons that you mentioned. But as it is a more invasive, and more costly diagnostic exam, many men often neglect to do them regularly, even though they shouldn't. 

2 hours ago, mstevens said:

 

I don't wish to be alarmist but your eGFR at 47 appears to be low. I was always of the understanding it should be like 90 or higher. That said, it is not marked as H or L so perhaps I have this wrong?

 

 

eGFR is just an average estimation based on BUN, creatinine, age, ethnicity, etc. Since it isn't an actual test they never provide a high or low for it. As you age into your seventies it also isn't expected to remain above 90. The 47 reading he has is of course quite low, but again it's just an average of the other markers. If his creatinine went down his eGFR would automatically go up. 

5 hours ago, Sheryl said:

 

The issue is not whether you fasted in terms of eating food but whether you were dehydrated.  Dehdration will elevate creatnine readings.

 

I suspect you were dehydrated on the 1earlier

blood tests due to fasting and that this last test is more indicative of your kidney function. But keep an eye on future values.

 

As mentioned, you can still drink plain water before cholesterol panel test even though hospital will say "nothing by mouth".

 

in this heate specially, it is important to avoid dehydration.

I've been testing annually for well over 10 years, usually in December or January when the weather isn't as hot, and I always drink a liter of water before bed and then another liter in the morning about two hours before I give blood for any of these marker tests. My personal experience is that the water helps to bring down your BUN a bit, but has much less of an effect on bringing down creatinine levels. 

1 hour ago, tomgreen said:

Hi and thanks for your comment .

 

I was some how hoping that the blood test I had to day ( 11 March 2024 ) was an indicator that my creatinine number was not too high Vs my blood test results on 5th of March 2024 .

 

Tom

You're welcome Tom. In conclusion I would say that your cholesterol isn't something to be very concerned about. I think it is the least of your worries. If it were me I wouldn't take the statins either because they can cause more harm than good to other organs. 
 

I would do more medical diagnostic investigation on your kidneys though with additional blood and urine tests on the other kidney function markers I mentioned. 
 

I would also start to make some definite lifestyle changes on diet and exercise. Those two things will likely have the biggest impact of all. Less sugar and carbs for sure and add in some high quality fats. More salads with olive oil too. 
 

The other option is to just go on as you are, not change anything, and let life take its natural course. The decision is up to you and the necessary changes will take some effort and commitment. It is entirely your choice. 
 

best wishes...

You can also get a doppler ultrasound test done on your kidneys to test blood flow in and out of the kidneys. Something I haven't done yet, but I may do at some point.  

1 minute ago, tomgreen said:

Hi and thanks for your comment .

 

I was some how hoping that the blood test I had to day ( 11 March 2024 ) was an indicator that my creatinine number was not too high Vs my blood test results on 5th of March 2024 .

 

 

Tom

 

. 

Creatinine can go up and down from use of medications. In my case my creatinine is almost always high because of regular weight training and creatinine in the blood is actually a byproduct of muscle breakdown. If I stop exercising for a few months then my blood creatinine drops back to normal levels. But all of the other kidney related tests I recommended come out normal for me. So it seems weight lifting is the cause for me. 

But in your case, the high creatinine isn't from rigorous exercise. So I would definitely get those 3 other kidney marker tests done that I suggested to see if there are any other signs of kidney disease. 

One more thing, if you drink lots of fruit juice and/or soft drinks, I would cut it out immediately. And don't put lots of sugar in coffee and tea. You don't want to end up with type 2 diabetes. Those things can also be contributing to your higher FBS and higher triglycerides.

And lack of physical activity and regular exercise is really an enemy of aging. Some lifestyle changes are needed for longevity. 

Lastly, residing in Thailand doesn't help and it can often be a strike against someone when trying to open an offshore bank account because Thailand is already seen as a country with high levels on money laundering. 

By the way, in case you're unfamiliar with the term KYC, it means "know your customer" and that's what the banks refer to all of their questioning as when they have a lot of verification requirements that one must meet on "source of funds" and things like that. 

But really what it all boils down to is anti-money laundering procedures that they have put in place and, thus that's also why the KYC requirements continue to get more stringent as time goes on.  

Go for UOB, either in Thailand or Singapore. 

17 hours ago, soi3eddie said:

It is for this reason I use a separate account and never let it go under 810,000. Just not worth the hassle or risk for a bit of cash. Starting from scratch again can be a lot of work. Agent option not really a good idea if the OP actually now has the required 800k. Good luck whatever happens. A leson to you and all of us on here.

 

Good general advice on keeping a balance of at least 810K in the account. I do the same. Early on I realized that if you keep only the exact amount required in an account that you could be stymied by an unanticipated bank charge and something as little as a 200 Baht annual ATM card fee. 

On the DLT website it doesn't talk about the yellow book or pink card being acceptable though:

https://www.dlt.go.th/en/two-year-license/

If you scroll down it says the following:

    IN CASE OF FOREIGNER RENEW THAI DRIVING LICENCE [BY YOURSELF] FIVE-YEARS DRIVING LICENCE HAVE TO PREPARE THE DOCUMENTS AS FOLLOW

    1    ORIGINAL FIVE-YEARS THAI DRIVING LICENCE
    2   PASSPORT WITH NON-IMMIGRANT VISA (ORIGINAL AND PHOTO COPY)
    3   ORIGINAL PRESENT RESIDENT ADDRESS IN THAILAND CERTIFY FROM EMBASSY / IMMIGRATION BUREAU (VALID FOR 1 YEAR) OR WORK PERMIT WITH ORIGINAL AND PHOTO COPY

Thank you. That is what I thought, ridiculous. It is the best proof there is. But isn't there an official guideline on this somewhere as to what the law is? They can't just make this up as they go.

Also, I thought you can only renew at the DLT office within your district of residence?