Completely tear of the rotator cuff and slight collapse of the bicep.

[offset]

Recommendations for a doctor to carry out this repair near Hua Hin

[Sheryl]

 

Do not have this done in Hua Hin.  Nowhere near the same level of expertise as in Bangkok and will also cost more for what may be worse results.

 

You will need to come up to Bangkok, many excellent shoulder specialists there. Before I suggest one please indicate:

 

- where is more convenient for you, Thonburi area (closer drive from  Hua Hin) or central Bangkok?

- can you afford private hospital? (350 - 400k baht roughly)

 

 

[swm59nj]

In  2006 I  slipped fell on my  back in the states . I suffered a complete tear of the rotator cuff.  No bicep damage.  I could barely raise my arm.  I had surgery.  But after surgery I had a few months of rehab. Shortly after the surgery I developed scar tissue.  I had to return to the surgeon to have manual manipulation under sedation to break up the scar tissue. Ten minutes procedure .But of course every case and course of treatment is different. 
Listen to Sheryl.  She  has knowledge about medical issues and  doctors.  
You will need an orthopedic surgeon skilled in this type of surgery . And a good physical therapy specialist 

Edited March 8, 2023 by swm59nj

[Rimmer]

A troll post has been removed

[Captor]

7 hours ago, Sheryl said:

 

Do not have this done in Hua Hin.  Nowhere near the same level of expertise as in Bangkok and will also cost more for what may be worse results.

 

You will need to come up to Bangkok, many excellent shoulder specialists there. Before I suggest one please indicate:

 

- where is more convenient for you, Thonburi area (closer drive from  Hua Hin) or central Bangkok?

- can you afford private hospital? (350 - 400k baht roughly)

 

 

Are the doctors not so good in Hua Hin government or private hospitals over all or is it just for this certain operation above?

[GreasyFingers]

Surgery should be a last resort (from someone that has had it done). It can be healed naturally, if careful, and a bit of physio and massage as was my second case of it.

[simon43]

19 minutes ago, GreasyFingers said:

Surgery should be a last resort (from someone that has had it done). It can be healed naturally, if careful, and a bit of physio and massage as was my second case of it.

Can a complete tear heal naturally?  I'm no doctor but I'm thinking that if it has completely torn off then surgery must be required.

[GreasyFingers]

5 minutes ago, simon43 said:

Can a complete tear heal naturally?  I'm no doctor but I'm thinking that if it has completely torn off then surgery must be required.

An MRI will show how bad it is. The OP never mentioned having an MRI to determine the extent.

[Sheryl]

2 hours ago, Captor said:

Are the doctors not so good in Hua Hin government or private hospitals over all or is it just for this certain operation above?

This is quite specialized. OP needs not just any orthopedic surgeon but one with considerable expertise in treating rotator cuff repair. None in Hua Hin.

 

Hua Hin is a just a town, not a provincial capital or municipality, and its local government hospital is just a community hospital. Even travelling to the the provincial capital of Prachuab Kiri Khan, it is just a genera hospital, no region level facilities near by. 

 

The private hospitals in Hua Hin are really small with limited range of doctors. And very costly, more so private hospitals in Bangkok, as there is no economy of scale.

 

It is quite common for people in Hua Hin to need to come up to Bangkok for anyhting other than very routine care.

 

Sometimes the local Bangkok Hospital affiliate will arrange to bring down doctors or equipment for a specific patient  but when they do that it costs vastly more than same thing would at their hospitals in Bangkok.

 

On the positive side, no need to go into downtown Bangkok, there is a wealth of medical expertise on the Thonburi side of the river  and not far from the southern bus terminal.

[Captor]

2 hours ago, Sheryl said:

This is quite specialized. OP needs not just any orthopedic surgeon but one with considerable expertise in treating rotator cuff repair. None in Hua Hin.

 

Hua Hin is a just a town, not a provincial capital or municipality, and its local government hospital is just a community hospital. Even travelling to the the provincial capital of Prachuab Kiri Khan, it is just a genera hospital, no region level facilities near by. 

 

The private hospitals in Hua Hin are really small with limited range of doctors. And very costly, more so private hospitals in Bangkok, as there is no economy of scale.

 

It is quite common for people in Hua Hin to need to come up to Bangkok for anyhting other than very routine care.

 

Sometimes the local Bangkok Hospital affiliate will arrange to bring down doctors or equipment for a specific patient  but when they do that it costs vastly more than same thing would at their hospitals in Bangkok.

 

On the positive side, no need to go into downtown Bangkok, there is a wealth of medical expertise on the Thonburi side of the river  and not far from the southern bus terminal.

Thank you very much for the information, Sheryl.  I have wondered about the Hua Hin hospitals for some time.

[crobertsjr]

If you have any complete tears they will not heal by any natural processes. I am a retired nurse and I have been through 3 shoulder repairs. I had an open incision left shoulder repair in Hua Hin. It was done very well but the equipment to do the arthroscopic repair was not available. As a result, only the ACL was repaired. I was inpatient for about four days. The pain control was marginal at best. I had PT for three months in Hua Hin. I had decent improvement but things were not right. Good physicians and good after care staffing.

 

We had to travel to the USA for other reasons so I consulted an Ortho while I was there. He did a special MRI of the shoulder and recommended more surgery. I had the surgery done outpatient. There were three additional repairs including to the bicep, a bone spur removal, and repolish of the head of the humerus. All repairs were done arthroscopically. I was home the same afternoon with excellent pain management. I had physical therapy for three months and everything was fine. 

 

Last year, I had an accident while doing some construction and tore up the right shoulder. I tried the PT route in Hua Hin. Then, I went to Bangkok International Hospital and met with Dr. Vudhipong. He is outstanding. They still do not do outpatient repairs here and my tears and bicep fraying were pretty drastic. The delay in having the surgery allowed the muscle and tendon across the back of my shoulder blade to contract about 4 cm making the repair and recovery much more difficult. Dr. Vudhipong managed all the repairs using arthroscopic method. during the surgery. I did PT in the hospital for about a week. I should note I have underlying conditions so surgeries are a bit more difficult for me and it was no fault of the physician. I had excellent pain control throughout my stay. I completed my PT in Hua Hin without further problems and the right shoulder is actually better than the left, which was repaired in the states.

 

For sure, you do not want any surgery that will require opening the joint. This is old style practice and leads to poorer results than the arthroscopes. Please feel free to message me privately if you would like to ask more questions.

[airbalance]

I'm not certain here but Chula has some great surgeons who usually work in private hospitals but come and do surgery (at much more affordable prices) early morning and late evening (pre and post their private hospital requirements). Have you looked into this?

Another one place that my thai friends love is Piyakarun hospital (Thonburi side) as Sheryl mentioned. I'm sorry that I'm not able to specify a doctor but I'm certain those would be good choices (budget wise).