I need rotator cuff surgery my insurance turned me down where to go for less than 350,000b?

[NorthernRyland]

3 minutes ago, Quentin Zen said:

 

10 years, maybe 90,000 km in Thailand.   Started off super strong in 2016, and then after COVID I just got that feeling I was due for a bad crash.  Started running, injured, running again, injured, again, injured again, and now about 1.5 years without a bad injury running (might have figured it and finally started running different than when I was 18).   I've almost been hit a zillion times, once a massive tire (Caterpillar truck size) flew off the back of a truck and that was close (honestly, I sort of saw what was going to happen and got a safe distance; nonetheless, that tire might have really messed me up -- weight of a small car, who knows).   I've known (acquaintences) a few people who went to the hospital.  broken wrists, collarbone(s) and even a leg.  Some needed pins.  yea, not fun stuff.  Nonetheless, carving a corner at speed is one of the best feelings in the world, and a good ITT can really put you in the pain cave.  Bicycling is super dangerous, but that's OK.  not nearly as dangerous as a motorbike, IMO.  Anyhow, if you are younger than 50 I won't give you any advice.  If older, I really, really recommend considering running or swimming a few days a week.  Reflexes really slow down.   My peak riding was either in 2009 or 2001.  Peak fitness was probably 1995.  lol.   In my experience, no way I have the same reflexes.   Just my 2 cents if you are getting up there in age.    For maybe 1-2 years I would try to convince myself I was just like before, but so many close calls made me think maybe it really is me.  Group rides, no more.  

 

I had cycling friend in Chiang Mai many years ago that liked to go at speeds down mountains.  Previously he was a runner but just got into cycling mountains since moving to Chiang Mai. He lasted a number of years until one day on a trip in Phetchabun on that famous mountain he was going down and had a big crash and woke up in the hospital. Thinks he hit a dog maybe but blacked out and couldn't remember the crash. 

 

This shook him so badly he quit cycling then and there and went back to running. Moved back down to Pattaya even where we lived before and owned a condo.

 

I've managed to survive for 20 years on the bike in Thailand but it's only a matter of time. In fact the other day I saw the recent wreckage of a trailer carrying rocks that lost control around a steep sharp bend and crossed over the lane crashing into the side of the mountain. I bike up that road at least once a week and if I was coming up at the exact moment it would have been game over. No avoiding that one.

 

Here is a picture of that exact location. Imagine biking slowly up that (it's about 10% grade) and seeing a trailer coming flying at you. That's the reality of biking in Thailand so do so at your own risk.

 

[Quentin Zen]

1 minute ago, NorthernRyland said:

Previously he was a runner but just got into cycling mountains since moving to Chiang Mai. He lasted a number of years until one day on a trip in Phetchabun

It's funny you write this.  Maybe the same guy, but I remember following a cyclist on Strava and this is exactly what happened.  He was pretty strong, and I'm sure we both knew some of the same riders.   If I think about it, I might remember his name.  Ran marathons, maybe.  Good athlete.  I have quite a few respectable climbs and descents around Chiang Mai back in the day.  Coming down Doi Suthep, the plan was to average around 50 kph.  I think I did it in 49.  Yes, always a few sketchy blind turns.  30 mph for the Americans.  Back to Phethabun, because of that guy's accident I decided never to ride there. lol.  I just figured it was unlucky.  I'm thinking how long ago that was.......I even wonder if he went to Ubon.  It's late, brain not really working. lol

[NoDisplayName]

9 minutes ago, Quentin Zen said:

Coming down Doi Suthep, the plan was to average around 50 kph.  I think I did it in 49.  Yes, always a few sketchy blind turns.  30 mph for the Americans.

 

Slowpoke.

 

The record for the fastest speed on a bicycle is held by Dutch rider Fred Rompelberg, who reached 268.8 km/h (167.0 mph) while cycling downhill in 1995.

 

 

[Quentin Zen]

On Strava, my maximum speed was 88.5 kph near Doi Suket or something.  There's a super fast highway near there.   Only for few seconds, and it was not pleasant.  So 269 is, yea, he wins.  

[NorthernRyland]

20 minutes ago, Quentin Zen said:

It's funny you write this.  Maybe the same guy, but I remember following a cyclist on Strava and this is exactly what happened.  He was pretty strong, and I'm sure we both knew some of the same riders.   If I think about it, I might remember his name.  Ran marathons, maybe.  Good athlete.  I have quite a few respectable climbs and descents around Chiang Mai back in the day.  Coming down Doi Suthep, the plan was to average around 50 kph.  I think I did it in 49.  Yes, always a few sketchy blind turns.  30 mph for the Americans.  Back to Phethabun, because of that guy's accident I decided never to ride there. lol.  I just figured it was unlucky.  I'm thinking how long ago that was.......I even wonder if he went to Ubon.  It's late, brain not really working. lol

 

This was 2013 I think. I did the Doi Inthanon race with him, he was in the top 10 and I got 19 despite him being nearly 50 and I was 30 then (sore back, I'd had to stop). 😂 His name was Bob, from California. Very strong man.

[Quentin Zen]

11 minutes ago, NorthernRyland said:

 

This was 2013 I think. I did the Doi Inthanon race with him, he was in the top 10 and I got 19 despite him being nearly 50 and I was 30 then (sore back, I'd had to stop). 😂 His name was Bob, from California. Very strong man.

Same guy, yup.

 

Robert is the name I knew, but if he went by Bob.....well, of course he did.

 

Yea, he was/is strong.   2013.  I rode in Chiang Mai in 2008 and 2010 and then 2016-2017 , I think.   I'm sure you remember all the vegans, DR, and PP from France and then a young kid from Laos who loved to train in CM and the list goes on...small world.  Bob, yeah, he's why I'll never ride in Phetchabun.  

[NorthernRyland]

4 minutes ago, Quentin Zen said:

Same guy, yup.

 

Robert is the name I knew, but if he went by Bob.....well, of course he did.

 

Yea, he was/is strong.   2013.  I rode in Chiang Mai in 2008 and 2010 and then 2016-2017 , I think.   I'm sure you remember all the vegans, DR, and PP from France and then a young kid from Laos who loved to train in CM and the list goes on...small world.  Bob, yeah, he's why I'll ride in Phetchabun.  

 

yeah that's him, Robert. yes the Vegans. No idea how that started In Chiang Mai but I once met an Aussie guy on a ride who is known as the "Durian Rider" and has a social media presence. He was apparently a fruitarian. Very strong man as well. I wonder if he started the whole vegan thing in Chiang Mai.

 

 

 

[Quentin Zen]

14 minutes ago, NorthernRyland said:

 

This was 2013 I think. I did the Doi Inthanon race with him, he was in the top 10 and I got 19 despite him being nearly 50 and I was 30 then (sore back, I'd had to stop). 😂 His name was Bob, from California. Very strong man.

I'll keep Bob's last name private, but I'll share this guy I follow now who just seems to ride about 100 km a day for years and years and years....I don't know how he does it. Not as fast as Bob, but dedicated.

 

https://www.strava.com/athletes/1782925

 

I bring him up because I definitely worry one day he'll be unlucky.   

 

I also don't know this guy, so it's easier to link him.  

 

 

[Quentin Zen]

2 minutes ago, NorthernRyland said:

 

 

yeah that's him, Robert. yes the Vegans. No idea how that started In Chiang Mai but I once met an Aussie guy on a ride who is known as the "Durian Rider" and has a social media presence. He was apparently a fruitarian. Very strong man as well. I wonder if he started the whole vegan thing in Chiang Mai.

 

 

 

yeah, he's the DR in my post.

 

Him and the banana people. lol.   they broke up and.........  what a circus.  I've seen him in CM.

 

and then all that drama with the Canadian, almost a fight, arrested, and that was great comedy.  everyone accused everyone else of bad stuff (I'll be kind here), and you can find it all on YT.   I'm sure you've seen it already

 

of course.  

[Furioso]

4 hours ago, Felt 35 said:

 

I Had an accident similar in 2022 with a full width tear of the supraspinatus tendon which is one of the four rotator cuff muscles. I got a quote at Bumrungrad shortly after Thb 425,000, - My insurance did not cover and I was anyway scared about recovery time so I returned home  and both my general practitioner and an orthopedic shoulder specialist did not recommend that I undergo any surgery due to the long recovery time and, not least at my age, the chances of my shoulder recovering completely were slim. They did however recommend physiotherapy. I returned to Thailand and did the training myself, as I do regular strength training anyway. At that time, I had pain even when I was lying in bed, could not lift my arm out to the side and even swimming was impossible - Today, three years later, I can load 8kg on each arm and do lateral raises, swimming is painless, and I sleep without pain.

Felt

Congrats on your progress! I had a couple of sports injuries in my late 40's I almost agreed to a meniscus repair and a buddy of mine just said "don't let them cut you unless the pain is unbearable". Thankfully my knee healed up nicely on it's own.

 

After that I kept on playing on hard courts for another 7 years, and suffered through several shoulder, foot, and knee injuries. The last knee injury hit me at age 55, I could barely walk for 2-3 months even and a cortisone shot only helped for about 2 weeks. I was deathly afraid I screwed up my knee so bad it was going to require knee replacement surgery. Once again I listened to my friend and waited it out and six months later I was a lot better. So much so that I went on to play one final hardcourt season.

 

Thank god my friend told me to hold off on any surgery I probably would be way worse off today if I let them cut me.  For anyone considering surgery I strongly suggest BLIND 2nd and 3rd opinions. 

[NorthernRyland]

4 minutes ago, Quentin Zen said:

I'll keep Bob's last name private, but I'll share this guy I follow now who just seems to ride about 100 km a day for years and years and years....I don't know how he does it. Not as fast as Bob, but dedicated.

 

https://www.strava.com/athletes/1782925

 

I bring him up because I definitely worry one day he'll be unlucky.   

 

I also don't know this guy, so it's easier to link him.  

 

 

 

Yeah I used to know him. I don't use Strava now so I don't follow him anymore. His way out of my league but we could go together when he just started and was still little chubby. 😂 We got to ride together before. In fact way back when I brought back a power meter for him on my annual trip to the US. Very nice guy.

[Quentin Zen]

2 minutes ago, NorthernRyland said:

 

Yeah I used to know him. I don't use Strava now so I don't follow him anymore. His way out of my league but we could go together when he just started and was still little chubby. 😂 We got to ride together before. In fact way back when I brought back a power meter for him on my annual trip to the US. Very nice guy.

I stopped allowing my Strava to be public four years ago.  lol.  I also rode across America.  That guy is a machine.  There was even another tall guy, Ken, you probably know who crashed in CM......we could do this forever.   later.  

[NorthernRyland]

13 minutes ago, Quentin Zen said:

I stopped allowing my Strava to be public four years ago.  lol.  I also rode across America.  That guy is a machine.  There was even another tall guy, Ken, you probably know who crashed in CM......we could do this forever.   later.  

 

Yeah just mentioned him in DM. I thought it was Kent but the accent may have thrown me off. He crashed? oh man. He was fast downhill too. Very impressive man.

[GinBoy2]

On 6/8/2025 at 10:06 AM, Furioso said:

I'd go to India they've got fine surgeons for 1/10th the cost. 

I'm sure they are.

 

But I've always thought, what if something happens after the initial surgery.

 

Surgery is fine you get discharged and fly home, but a few days later something goes wrong?

 

Do you fly back to India to consult with the original surgeon, or do you have to find a local physician, then try to get all the medical records from India?

 

So maybe medical tourism is right for some, but I'm not convinced that it always saves you money

[Yellowtail]

9 minutes ago, GinBoy2 said:

I'm sure they are.

 

But I've always thought, what if something happens after the initial surgery.

 

Surgery is fine you get discharged and fly home, but a few days later something goes wrong?

 

Do you fly back to India to consult with the original surgeon, or do you have to find a local physician, then try to get all the medical records from India?

 

So maybe medical tourism is right for some, but I'm not convinced that it always saves you money

As I understand it, medical tourism is primarily for people that have poor, little or no medical services available to them in their home countries, not people trying to save money. That's why Bumrungrad is swamped with Arabs. 

[Furioso]

14 minutes ago, GinBoy2 said:

I'm sure they are.

 

But I've always thought, what if something happens after the initial surgery.

 

Surgery is fine you get discharged and fly home, but a few days later something goes wrong?

 

Do you fly back to India to consult with the original surgeon, or do you have to find a local physician, then try to get all the medical records from India?

 

So maybe medical tourism is right for some, but I'm not convinced that it always saves you money

I would think for a surgery like rotator cuff most people would stay in India in a decent hotel near the hospital for about a month. Hopping on a plane after surgery is a no go.

Of course people have different situations in my case I've got 75% coverage with a catastrophic cap. I'm lucky I don't have to worry too much about cost and I definitely prefer surgery out of country. 

[richard_smith237]

14 minutes ago, Yellowtail said:

As I understand it, medical tourism is primarily for people that have poor, little or no medical services available to them in their home countries, not people trying to save money. That's why Bumrungrad is swamped with Arabs. 

 

The Health Care in the UAE, Qatar, Saudi is excellent and arguably better than Thailand, but also significantly more expensive....  for similar reasons, if the USA were close to Thialand it would have a lot more USA patients.

 

The 'Arabs' we see here, particularly in hospitals such as Bumrungrad are here primarily due to costs:

- Medical treatment in the Gulf is expensive, especially in the private sector.

- Thailand offers the same (or better) care at 40-70% less, even in top-tier hospitals.

- Governments often cover treatment abroad for citizens because it’s actually cheaper than paying private hospital rates at home.

- Especially for non-insured or semi-insured procedures (like cosmetic surgery, fertility treatment, dental work), Thailand is far more cost-effective.

 

Example: A complex orthopaedic surgery in Dubai might cost $40,000 - in Bangkok, it could be $12,000 with the same outcomes.

 

[scubascuba3]

46 minutes ago, GinBoy2 said:

I'm sure they are.

 

But I've always thought, what if something happens after the initial surgery.

 

Surgery is fine you get discharged and fly home, but a few days later something goes wrong?

 

Do you fly back to India to consult with the original surgeon, or do you have to find a local physician, then try to get all the medical records from India?

 

So maybe medical tourism is right for some, but I'm not convinced that it always saves you money

Just fly back it's cheap

[Yellowtail]

42 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

The Health Care in the UAE, Qatar, Saudi is excellent and arguably better than Thailand, but also significantly more expensive....  for similar reasons, if the USA were close to Thialand it would have a lot more USA patients.

 

The 'Arabs' we see here, particularly in hospitals such as Bumrungrad are here primarily due to costs:

- Medical treatment in the Gulf is expensive, especially in the private sector.

- Thailand offers the same (or better) care at 40-70% less, even in top-tier hospitals.

- Governments often cover treatment abroad for citizens because it’s actually cheaper than paying private hospital rates at home.

- Especially for non-insured or semi-insured procedures (like cosmetic surgery, fertility treatment, dental work), Thailand is far more cost-effective.

 

Example: A complex orthopaedic surgery in Dubai might cost $40,000 - in Bangkok, it could be $12,000 with the same outcomes.

 

You might be right, but the only hospital I have been in the Middle East was outside of Dubai, and it was a dump. 

[Yellowtail]

34 minutes ago, scubascuba3 said:

Just fly back it's cheap

Flying with your arm in a sling, terrified you are going to bump your shoulder, and with only one are to handle the luggage and whatnot is fun. I was still working and flying business and it was still a nightmare. 

 

Pretty big time investment as well. 

[newbee2022]

On 6/8/2025 at 10:46 PM, Pinot said:

No, I have the MRI, this is straightforward now. I'm looking for a great place to save some money. I assume I'll have to pay for it. 

...and you would go to the cheapest but not best?? 😱

[newbee2022]

Veijthani Hospital is one of the best.

Or the best anyway.

People go there from many countries.

Ask for quotation.

[NoDisplayName]

4 hours ago, Furioso said:

I would think for a surgery like rotator cuff most people would stay in India in a decent hotel near the hospital for about a month. Hopping on a plane after surgery is a no go.

Of course people have different situations in my case I've got 75% coverage with a catastrophic cap. I'm lucky I don't have to worry too much about cost and I definitely prefer surgery out of country. 

 

In my case I flew from China with a 5kg carry-on.

 

Couple days in hospital for tests and prep, then a week in hospital private room for recovery after valve replacement.  Food was excellent.  

 

This was followed up with a week at a beach-side resort.  Eat at buffet, sleep, treadmill at fitness center, long walks on beach.  Lather, rinse, repeat.

[Pinot]

Some have asked about the insurance company. It was originally called Regency for Expats  and is now going by Regency Global. It required getting treated at Public Hospitals. The surgeon I was going to use has operating rights at all Phuket Hospitals and is considered the best choice by everyone we asked. 

 

I don't know what I'm going to do yet. I could fly to Udon Thani (wifes home) and have the surgery for 300k at a private hospital. 

 

I am 75. Have very little use of my left arm. Can't lift it up in the air, only to 45 degrees. The pain is tough but it's getting better or I'm getting used to it. 

 

I'm still bicycling 25 km a day weather permitting. 

 

Thanks for all the India recommendations. I don't know. $5000 sounds better than $10000 but...you know, India. 

 

Unlike my left arm, it's up in the air. I've got the decision under appeal from the insurance company but not confident in the decision. Pass on Regency Global Insurance.  

[Sheryl]

Does this policy have a stipulation that it only covers emergencies?  Because if not, then problem was that paperwork submitted did not provide adequate medical justification to establish why surgery, rather than conservative management, was proposed. . Either that, or the surgery really is not medically essential i.e. the injury may heal without it. If so then conservative management would be better.  As mentioned this surgery is not always successful. Overall,  studies show outcomes with it not to be better than with conservative management  

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33419401/

Though in specific individual cases there may be more reason gor surgical intervention than in others. I have no idea if this applies to you. 

 

Do not have this in Udon Thani. If you go elsewhere, go to Bangkok. In fact  even using government hospital, Bangkok is far better choice e.g. Chulalongkorn or Siriraj. 

 

Continue to recommend consultation with Prof. Mason to get clear handle on what can be expected with and without surgical intervention. 

 

No