Tapster Posted April 22, 2018 Share Posted April 22, 2018 Does anyone have experience of orthopaedic surgery in Phuket? I'm researching total knee replacement. Bangkok Hospital Phuket or Phuket International Hospital? (I know they are both part of the same group, but specialities might differ) Thanks for any advice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swimman Posted April 22, 2018 Share Posted April 22, 2018 Research the proposed surgeon's qualification/experience not the hospital IE https://phukethospital.com/doctor/rangson-chiawsirikajorn/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimi007 Posted April 22, 2018 Share Posted April 22, 2018 I would go to Bangkok personally to https://www.bumrungrad.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Psimbo Posted April 23, 2018 Share Posted April 23, 2018 11 hours ago, Jimi007 said: I would go to Bangkok personally to https://www.bumrungrad.com I would second that- the local places just heavily stack the bills and some work can be dubious. I know someone who went into BHP and ended up with a massive infection that nearly killed him. They are money machines, An alternative to the preferred option of Bkk would be Songkla, Chiang Mai or any other place where the big teaching hospitals are- some first class professors work at the local hospitals as a result. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Patong2 Posted April 23, 2018 Share Posted April 23, 2018 Have had both knees done left one, 12 months ago. Amazed at how good and painfree the recovery has been. This morning did 8.5km walk along Patong Beach and halfway up the hill at the south end of the beach by Amari Coral, this, 12 months after the op. Mine done in NZ and the 2 things to get right 1. the surgeon, there are hugely different success rates between them 2. now the technology has advanced and my replacements were laser aligned and that apparently gives much better chance of perfection. If doing in Thailand ensure the hospital has the laser alignment method available and try to talk to someone who has had the op and find out the success or otherwise. Do the stationary bike thing and other therapy it really helps with you recovery Good luck with what you decide Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steelepulse Posted April 23, 2018 Share Posted April 23, 2018 I had some knee issues. Had a couple MRI's done and then had a world class radiologist from Austria review the MRI and I was given a plan that I needed a partial knee replacement. Local dr's at both hospitals said a scope would do the job. Needless to say I didn't get anything done locally. Was all set to get the operation done at Bumrumgrad and pain gradually went away, so I've skipped the surgery. Your best bet is to contact Dr Melcher in Patong. He only does full knee replacements, but he knows his stuff. http://www.phuket-international-health-clinic.com/doctor-profiles/dr-gerhard-melcher.html 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tapster Posted April 23, 2018 Author Share Posted April 23, 2018 (edited) Thank you for the suggestions. Mmm....3 votes for Bumrungrad. I've already heard that it's an excellent hospital, but expensive. I will look into that in more detail. It all depends on my Thai medical insurance not deciding that it's a pre-existing condition and refusing to pay up. They haven't specifically excluded my knees, and I have told them about my history of cartilage surgery. We'll see. So, do you think the standards in Phuket would be significantly lower than at Bumrungrad? Phuket is hardly a provincial backwater. As has been said, it's obviously a good idea to choose the correct surgeon, but how can I know who's best? For instance, at Bumrungrad, there are 29 named surgeons who are listed as performing joint surgery. Is there a league table of surgeons in Thailand?? Re: Dr Melcher, good suggestion! I've seen him several times about various medical issues. I've written to him separately. Edited April 23, 2018 by Tapster Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheryl Posted April 23, 2018 Share Posted April 23, 2018 Best knee doc in Thailand is at Bumrungrad https://www.bumrungrad.com/doctors/Panya-Wongpatimachai Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimi007 Posted April 23, 2018 Share Posted April 23, 2018 I have had a hip replacement and I seriously considered Bumrungrad as they have robotic assisted surgery for hip replacement surgery. But I got a free one in California. Looks better than many I have seen from other countries and I did get the top surgeon at my hospital there. I tried to get into a hospital that had robotic surgery, but my insurance wouldn’t approve it. I am kind of doubting insurance here will pay for a pre-existing condition. Good luck and best wishes!Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Croc Posted April 23, 2018 Share Posted April 23, 2018 Bangkok Phuket Hospital does robotic surgery. They have an excellent orthopedic centre, it's not necessary to travel to Bangkok. They seem to be in the process of rebuilding their website so couldn't give a link. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Psimbo Posted April 24, 2018 Share Posted April 24, 2018 On 4/23/2018 at 10:54 AM, steelepulse said: I had some knee issues. Had a couple MRI's done and then had a world class radiologist from Austria review the MRI and I was given a plan that I needed a partial knee replacement. Local dr's at both hospitals said a scope would do the job. Needless to say I didn't get anything done locally. Was all set to get the operation done at Bumrumgrad and pain gradually went away, so I've skipped the surgery. Your best bet is to contact Dr Melcher in Patong. He only does full knee replacements, but he knows his stuff. http://www.phuket-international-health-clinic.com/doctor-profiles/dr-gerhard-melcher.html Is he not the go-to guy at Vachira as well? If so have heard a lot of good about him and know someone who had a complex fracture set there. He would certainly be in demand at Vachira! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steelepulse Posted April 24, 2018 Share Posted April 24, 2018 Yes, he has his clinic in Patong and also works at Vachira. Only reason I didn't go with him is I only needed a partial replacement. He told me he only does full replacements, so might be the best option for Tapster. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Tapster Posted April 24, 2018 Author Popular Post Share Posted April 24, 2018 (edited) OK, this is going very well! Dr Melcher sounds like a very good option for me. He is a very good clinician. I already know that, but I didn't know that he did knee replacements. Also, my issue is sport-related and he is very knowledgeable about sport problems. I am very keen to preserve lateral knee ligaments for stability, as I plan to resume rock climbing after the knee replacement. Preserving the quadriceps attachment to the tibia would be a big help as well. We can discuss all that. Add to that the fact that I can communicate with him perfectly, and it sounds like a plan! I'd already decided to make an appointment with him today, as he emailed me back to tell me that he does knees. Just for interest, my uncle was an orthopaedic surgeon. He said that knee replacements were not rocket science, just carpentry! Many thanks to all for the help. If there's any interest, I'll post back with progress. Edited April 24, 2018 by Tapster 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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