Is Someone Pulling a Fast One?

[Traubert]

1 hour ago, Formaleins said:

Dull pain, feels heavy but it is no where near as painful as I expected, more of a nuisance.

Use the other hand. Difficult to pull a fast one with a broken wrist. Plus it will feel like someone else. ????

[mstevens]

9 hours ago, Formaleins said:

Does anyone know if it is possible to get it "fixed" properly (pins/screws etc.) at a later date - say for instance when the cast comes off and it turns out to be a problem using my hand? could they do the full repair then or is it done with once it has healed?

You need to get this fixed properly - and that in all likelihood means consulting with an orthopaedic surgeon and being operated on. If this injury doesn't heal properly you might not gain the full use of your wrist (and by definition, the hand and arm). My advice would be to find a good orthopaedic surgeon, even if it means paying more than you're comfortable with. It's your arm and hand we're talking about.....you want to be able to have the full use of it for the rest of your life!

[Sheryl]

12 hours ago, Formaleins said:

Agreed 100%! I often find myself pleasantly surprised with the quality and helpfulness of some of the advice from many of the posters on here. Some very good points both ways which makes things a bit more difficult for choice, food for thought, I will think this over, but I am probably going to give the metal work a wide berth. Thanks for all of the replies, very interesting.

 

Before making a decision you may regret for the rest of your life at least get another opinion and clear explanation of the likely outcomes with and without internal fixation.

 

Dr Chanakarn Phornphutkul  is highly recommended in Chiang Mai and has his own clinic. (He is also at Bangkok Hospital and I think  Rajavej Hospital but wiull cost more to see him there).  Unlike the govt hospital there will be time for thorough expanation and  doctor will speak English fluently. He has treated many TV membvers and gets very favorabel reviews.

 

https://chanakarn.com/

 

Before going, go to the government hospital where you had your Xray, go to the Xray dept, show them your hospital number and ask for the films. Bring those with you. This is essential, doctor cannot determine anything without the Xrays.

 

Certainly no one was "pulling a fast one" one you and the price you were quoted was quite reasonable for that procedure at a government hospital. However the doctor will likely have been a resident still in training and it is well worth getting the advice of a more senior, experienced doctor. In addition it sounds like the communication was not very good and as you are considering refusing the surgery you need a clear explanation of likely outcomes with and without it so that you can make a truly informed choice.

 

 

 

 

[uhuh]

Another good orthopedic surgeon in CM is Dr Tossaporn, works at Ram Hospital

[legend49]

30K baht sounds cheap. I had a metal bar and screws ( titanium) put into my ankle stability bone after breaking it. Try 300,000 b thats what i had to pay for total job.

[rocket3rider]

I'm a part time gynecologist but I'll take a look at it for you.

[seancbk]

18 hours ago, Sheryl said:

Repairing a fracture with pins etc will indeed cost at least 30k in a government hospital and about 10 - 15k of that will be the hardware. A simple general surgery not requiring any sort ofmetal implant or prosthesis in a government hospital genetally runs 15-20k.

 

These are very cheap prices.

 

At a private hospital this will run well over 100k. Maybe even over 150k.

 

You would be extremely ill advised to not have the fracture treated properly. You may have a lifelong deformity as a result and trying to correct it after the bone has healed, if it is possible at all , will cost far more.

 

Standard first aid for a fracture is to immobilze the limb and clean the wound. That may have been what was done initially pending ortho consult. It certainly doesn't sound like they reduced the fracture. But if you have doubts as to whether the surgery is necessary, get another opinion. (Bring the Xray with you).

 

Fractures are not all the same. Some are just hairline cracks with the bone still in alignment. Some result in the bone being out of alignment but with a single clean break. Some result in fragments. Etc etc. It also matters where exactly the fracture occurs.

 

The surgery being proposed can be done under either general or regional anesthesia (nerve block).

 

You should also do something about getting health insurance. A really major accident (head trauma etc) or catastrophic illness can reach 1 million baht in a hovernment hodpital and 3-5 million in a private hospital.

 

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

 

 

 

 

 

Agreed.  Especially as he's only in his mid fifties and should have another 30 years ahead of him.   

[SteveK]

30k to not end up with a gammy wrist sounds cheap. And don't delay, once the bones start to fuse in the wrong position it will undoubtedly become much more laborious and expensive to correct. But for 30k I could fly home and get the work done for free and then fly back to Thailand and still have cash left over.

 

I knew a guy who was on holiday in Thailand and came off his motorbike in Pattaya and broke his collarbone. He didn't have insurance, so used painkillers to tide him over until he got home. By the time he was seen back in the UK, the bones hard started to fuse in the incorrect position, they had to rebreak the bone and set it properly - very painful and he lost a lot of money from not being able to work.

Edited April 23, 2019 by SteveK

[Pdavies99]

19 hours ago, lopburi3 said:

I also believe price to be reasonable and definitely not a 'fast one'.  Appears you did not have a clean break so cast alone not the preferred treatment.  With pins and such in private hospital expect would cost several hundred thousand baht in today's world.  I spent 220k for liver biopsy/RFA (which is pin size entry and less than an hour).  And they did put to sleep and 3 nights in hospital.  CT scan costs about 20k and MRI about the same.  Hospital treatment is not cheap - and for your operation expect they will have to use imported materials that are very costly (even for government hospital).  

Wow that seems a lot, I had a liver biopsy in the UK, local anasthetic, machine is like a needle etc, job done, 3 hours checking for blood loss, BP etc and then allowed home, no problems at all.

 

It seems you had the VIP service (along with the customary Thai Bill).

 

I paid for it privately and was chsrge £450 last month.

(CT and MRI twice, once before and then afterwards).

[tlandtday]

As a side note I have seen one doctor in the past 10 years and have never been healthier:)... however I do spend a lot of time and effort researching and analyzing and prescribing via the internet:)

[rwill]

19 hours ago, Formaleins said:

Jesus, no wonder the cost of insurance is so expensive, I really did not expect that it was such a big procedure.

Aetna opal plan, Thailand only, 750K per year coverage, is only 26K per year for the 60-65 age range.  They have a couple cheaper ones that max out at lower amounts too.

[lopburi3]

9 minutes ago, Pdavies99 said:

Wow that seems a lot, I had a liver biopsy in the UK, local anasthetic, machine is like a needle etc, job done, 3 hours checking for blood loss, BP etc and then allowed home, no problems at all.

 

It seems you had the VIP service (along with the customary Thai Bill).

 

I paid for it privately and was chsrge £450 last month.

(CT and MRI twice, once before and then afterwards).

Actually it was both biopsy and RFA done on CT table using both CT and ultrasound positioning for a 4-6mm mass (not an easy target).  One day in hospital to try lower blood pressure, one in ICU after procedure and one in normal room.  As rooms are not an extreme expense they are used much more often here (but yes was non-Thai rate). 

But did not want to move off-topic, just to point out 30k was likely very reasonable.  Highly urge OP to reconsider and have procedure as there are too many potential years remaining to risk alternative.

[BritManToo]

17 hours ago, uhuh said:

He mentioned a scar. That means he had an operation. This is not done as an outpatient procedure.

 

Whether an operation was necessary depends on the X-rays. Only a very simple broken arm is a routine inpatient procedure (google Colles fracture).

What the OP describes sounds not so simple ("smashed") but we really don't know. 

Yes, the private hospitals here like to pile on unnecessary operations to pad your (insurance) bill.

When I were younger (in the UK) they didn't have metal plates and everyone recovered fully from broken bones.

 

I despise the whole American health system, it's destroying the world as we knew it with it's outrageously expensive treatment and spreading, as all the other health services jump on the medical extortion bandwagon.

[BritManToo]

19 hours ago, Sheryl said:

Standard first aid for a fracture is to immobilze the limb and clean the wound. That may have been what was done initially pending ortho consult. It certainly doesn't sound like they reduced the fracture. But if you have doubts as to whether the surgery is necessary, get another opinion. (Bring the Xray with you).

If they plastered his arm, they considered it 'job done'.

Never heard of any hospital in the world plastering a break after an initial consultation.

[TheFishman1]

I would listen to the Doctors you did not go to med school done be so cheap 

[Tropposurfer]

Why bother going to any hospital at all sounds like you think you are or are a doctor and can self-diagnose just fine by yourself. Just put a cast on and be done with it???????? Don't need metalwork ???? bla bla bla

Full operation ... WOW! 30K for an operation with complex orthopaedic specialist presiding ... what a rip off !!!!!!!! $1300 UAD for an operation what a proposition .... outrageous ??????????? !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The more I read here the more I thin most members of TV are either living in place a psychic place akin to Micheal Jackson's Neverland or are taking some sort of medication that prevents them from holding any sort of reasonable grasp of reality.

[Rally123]

Had to have both my ankles subtalar fused at the same time. Required rods and screws. Had it done at a military hospital, costs same as at a government hospital. I had to purchase the metalwork in advance privately which were then delivered to said hospital prior to the op. In and out in 3 days. Cheap as chips. Don't use a private hospital.

[Sheryl]

58 minutes ago, rwill said:

Aetna opal plan, Thailand only, 750K per year coverage, is only 26K per year for the 60-65 age range.  They have a couple cheaper ones that max out at lower amounts too.

750K per year cover is way, way too low.

[Pdavies99]

1 hour ago, lopburi3 said:

Actually it was both biopsy and RFA done on CT table using both CT and ultrasound positioning for a 4-6mm mass (not an easy target).  One day in hospital to try lower blood pressure, one in ICU after procedure and one in normal room.  As rooms are not an extreme expense they are used much more often here (but yes was non-Thai rate). 

But did not want to move off-topic, just to point out 30k was likely very reasonable.  Highly urge OP to reconsider and have procedure as there are too many potential years remaining to risk alternative.

Fair enough, still seems typical Thailand price! But I guess yor BP was an issue, not really sure ICU was needed, but you paid and got the service you wanted. Best Paul

[Monkeyrobot]

That operation in Bumrangrad was ove 300k for my friend about 4 years ago so 30k is a good deal. 

[Nanaplaza666]

23 hours ago, Formaleins said:

Does anyone know if it is possible to get it "fixed" properly (pins/screws etc.) at a later date - say for instance when the cast comes off and it turns out to be a problem using my hand? could they do the full repair then or is it done with once it has healed?

If you wait that long then the bone might have grown back wrong so they need to brake it again to set it properly so better to do it now then wait 

[The Theory]

On 4/22/2019 at 7:35 PM, Formaleins said:

They then told me that I should pay 30K Baht to have it fixed properly 

If you decide to so then you need to ask them if the “removing” cost is included ? There could be a 2nd fee for that. 

[Khaeng Mak]

On 4/22/2019 at 8:06 PM, Formaleins said:

Does anyone know if it is possible to get it "fixed" properly (pins/screws etc.) at a later date - say for instance when the cast comes off and it turns out to be a problem using my hand? could they do the full repair then or is it done with once it has healed?

The problem with that approach is muscular atrophy.  When my girl's fiberglass cast came off (it was from hand to elbow) here entire forearm was literally just skin and bone.  I took her months of squeezing a rubber ball and exercising with a rubber resistance strap for her to get her arm back to something normal.

[Khaeng Mak]

15 minutes ago, The Theory said:

If you decide to so then you need to ask them if the “removing” cost is included ? There could be a 2nd fee for that. 

I removed my girl's fiberglass cast myself with a pair of tin snips.  Not because I was worried about the cost.  But because both her and I where sick of waiting all day in the massive cue at the government hospital.

[NanLaew]

23 hours ago, Formaleins said:

mid fifties.

That means maybe another 25-30 years with a possibly gimpy wrist because you went cheap? You may want to take up a new hobby and find the 'damaged' wrist in an impediment which leads to regret, manifesting in anger and ultimately, as one gets older, runs the serious risk of becoming one of TV's serial whiners.

 

Ignore the 'pins falling out' which can happen with younger, still-growing bones. Your bones are fully grown and developed and nothing will 'come loose' before you pop your clogs.

 

Me? I would want to keep my bodywork near to 'as new' as possible.

[Khaeng Mak]

3 hours ago, BritManToo said:

If they plastered his arm, they considered it 'job done'.

Never heard of any hospital in the world plastering a break after an initial consultation.

They put a temporary cast on my girl because there was no doctor at the hospital.  She then had to come back for further x-rays and then a fiberglass cast.

 

The temporary cast was plaster and the attending nurses literally had no idea what they were doing.  Complete gong show.

[shy coconut]

43 minutes ago, Benroon said:

Absolute lunacy !! 

Yeah, but someone on the internet says paracetamol will sort it!!

[hugocnx]

On 4/22/2019 at 8:06 PM, Formaleins said:

Does anyone know if it is possible to get it "fixed" properly (pins/screws etc.) at a later date - say for instance when the cast comes off and it turns out to be a problem using my hand? could they do the full repair then or is it done with once it has healed?

If they gave you a soft cast that means the bones are probably broken but not separated. This heals normally quite quick. I think some clever one in the hospital combined farang - money and tries to set you up. Go for a second opinion if you don't trust yourself. Did you actually see the x rays?

[Mansell]

There is a German orthopedic surgeon in Phuket who is excellent. Maybe you could get a second opinion from him. Just do a search for German surgeon Phuket.....all the Germans know him.

[Dumbastheycome]

Yes. But I have a feeling  it is  not the  hospital.