Knee MRI in Bangkok (public hospital)

[Riomar]

Hey guys!

I need a decent knee MRI scan to take with me (or send it I get digital) to my Dr. I say decent referring to the fact that the images size are not small and the scanner is not obsolete.

I was wondering how much that would cost in public hospital, and in wich public hospitals I could find that service. 

 

Or else, if that won't be possible in public hospital, what would be the best option in the private scene.

 

O read the posts on the subject but didn't found the info in asking for. Maybe no one knows the info with such detail, I'm just taking the chance and asking. Thanks a lot!

[lopburi3]

Not sure if there are MRI available outside of hospital but for that would require a doctor visit to obtain (not very expensive).  The scan itself is not cheap however, even at a government hospital.  My last hour or so abdominal scan, with contrast for cancer, was about 25,000 baht at what I would call a (price wise) second tier private hospital.  Believe images will be on CD.

[Sheryl]

You can't get an MRI on demand at a government hospital. Have to see a doctor who has to decide it is necessary and order it. No guarantee of success and will take you all day, maybe even several days, to find out. Then there is usually a wait list (possibly a month or more) for the test and it is not all that much less expensive than if you went to a private imaging center.

Note also that only the highest level govt hospitals have MRI. Most do not.

www.mrithailand.com will do MRI on request at about same price as a government hospital and give you the CD. Make sure you know exactly what type of MRI needed, contrast vs no contrast etc.

If contrast is required be aware there is a small risk in receiving it outside of a hospital setting. Small in terms of likelihood, not magnitude. In the rare case where there is a severe reaction to the contrast matetial it can be life threatening.

Sent from my SM-J701F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[uhuh]

If contrast is required you may want to check creatinine level in your blood before getting the MRI (easy to do, cheap, any doctor or lab can do it)

https://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletter_article/are-mri-contrast-agents-harmful

[tuvia]

I was told by a doctor at Bumrungrad that the MRI quality at the same day private imaging places in BKK are not good enough (and he knew I would not be getting it done at B'grad due to time constraints). So back to my home base of Beijing I went, where a doctor who works at a local hospital and also at the overpriced expat hospital sent me to a third hospital, because apparently their MRI equipment was far superior (this even though he would later be doing my knee surgery at the expat hospital).

 

All this to say that at least based on my experiences, probably you should find the place with the better quality MRI available so as not to waste your time and money.

[uhuh]

Read the post of BB24

 

[uhuh]

Read the post of BB24, it describes the current situation very well.

 

MRI machines have become very common in Thailand over the last 10 years, eg the city of Udon Thani boasts at least 5 of them. 

But if you start to question the quality of the machines information is hard to get by.

Bangkok Hospital in Bangkok and in Pattaya has 3T MRI which is becoming the standard in rich countries. 

Bumrungrad still has 1.5 T (which doesn't necessarily make it less valuable) as do most other places. 

But this is not the only important parameter.

You can produce useless pictures with a very good machine if you cut corners. Happens a lot in for-profit medicine, not just in Thailand.

 

mrithailand.com does have a good reputation and is usually considered on par with Bumrungrad - but whether this can be said about imaging of the knee I wouldn't know. 

 

Most doctors prefer a MRI from a place they know and they trust even if this means they make a new one.