Best hospital for Digestive Diseases in Bangkok?

[angryfarang]

Morning Folks,

 

I'm 39 years old and I've been having intestinal issues for the past 2 years and want to visit a doctor to have it checked out properly. 

 

I often have narrow thin stools, gas, bloating, constipation, diarrhea, etc.  There is no blood in the stool that I can see.

 

I'm fit and healthy and exercise regularly with a good diet.  I've tried changing my diet and eliminating things with no luck.  I've tried different probiotics, cutting out dairy, etc.  I suspect it could be IBS, but would like to get some proper exams done to make sure it isn't anything more serious.

 

I'm looking for the full range of tests,  fecal occult blood, yeast, helicobacter pylori, paraisites, sibo.  I'd also ultrasound/x-rays to check for abnormalities and even possible a capsule endoscopy.

 

Cheers.

[siam2007]

From my own experience I would strongly recommend Dr. Thirdchai Supasiti from Bumrungrad. He has a very analytical approach, will assign enough time for your visit and is not trying to "dispatch" as many patients in one hour as is possible as many Doctors do. And he is willing to listen and will only order you to do things that really make sense. It is an older lad, and has been a resident physician at Bzumrungrad for a very long time. Needless to say, Bumrungrad has first-class facilities so all the examinations will be done using state-of-the-art equipment. Not the cheapest option for sure, but I found out that other quality-hospitals in BKK aren't actually cheaper (of which the reason could of course be that they are all owned by the same conglomerate and there is almost a monopoly in BKK nowadays)

[angryfarang]

Great, thank you.  I will book an appointment at Bumrungrad.

[Sheryl]

You need a "real" colonoscopy, not capsule (which costs more and which would have to be followed by an actual colonoscopy anyhow if anything were found). 

 

Not only is the vusualization better but during a colonoscopy any polyps or suspicous lesions noted can readily be removed for biopsy.

[angryfarang]

Damn, I was hoping for something less invasive.  I've read horror stories, e.g.  bowel perforation

 

Will an x-ray/ultrasound show abnormalities like lesions or polyps?

[impulse]

19 hours ago, angryfarang said:

Great, thank you.  I will book an appointment at Bumrungrad.

  When you call, make sure you specify and insist on the doctor you want.  Otherwise, they'll assign you to one who has time on his/her hands.

[chiang mai]

You don't need to be concerned at having a colonoscopy done here, it's a walk in the park and painless. I had one four years ago and am having a second one tomorrow as it happens - you'll go to sleep looking at all the smiling faces around you who are staring at your naked bum, in what seems like five minutes later you wake up and are instantly fully awake. Worst part is emptying your bowels beforehand, just get a good book to read as you sit on the throne for an hour and you'll be fine. BTW perforated bowel is not common at all and the risk is very small.

[angryfarang]

If I get one, I'd rather not have general anesthesia.

[angryfarang]

8 minutes ago, impulse said:

  When you call, make sure you specify and insist on the doctor you want.  Otherwise, they'll assign you to one who has time on his/her hands.

 

Unfortunately that doctor isn't working on the only day I can visit.  The only one available is Dr. Charkaphan Osangthamnon

[chiang mai]

Just now, angryfarang said:

If I get one, I'd rather not have general anesthesia.

It's not a general, it's very light sedation. I know one person who had one done without any anaesthetic and he described it as the worst pain he'd ever experienced, a big rugby playing full of bravado sort of bloke who became instantly more humble.

[angryfarang]

3 minutes ago, chiang mai said:

It's not a general, it's very light sedation. I know one person who had one done without any anaesthetic and he described it as the worst pain he'd ever experienced, a big rugby playing full of bravado sort of bloke who became instantly more humble.

 

Ah.  Your post said you will fall asleep, so I assumed you had a general anesthetic.

[chiang mai]

Just now, angryfarang said:

 

Ah.  Your post said you will fall asleep, so I assumed you had a general anesthetic.

As far as the patient is concerned they will fall asleep, doctors and the medical profession may view it differently and refer to it as mild sedation - you will close your eyes, you will not experience anything other than dreamless sleep, you will wake up and you will remember nothing, to me and everyone else on the planet that's sleep.

[angryfarang]

Being unconscious isn't mild sedation to me.  I'll definitely skip any sedation.  I want to be awake for the whole thing and able to view it.

[chiang mai]

1 minute ago, angryfarang said:

Being unconscious isn't mild sedation to me.  I'll definitely skip any sedation.  I want to be awake for the whole thing and able to view it.

That should be loads of fun, report back afterwards and tell us how it went!!!

 

[angryfarang]

LOL.  I will.  After reading a few forums, most people just found it uncomfortable for 15 minutes.  Anyway, we'll see.  Maybe they'll dose me up with some diamorphine.  That would be nice.  :)

[evadgib]

1 hour ago, angryfarang said:

Being unconscious isn't mild sedation to me.  I'll definitely skip any sedation.  I want to be awake for the whole thing and able to view it.

You'd need a neck like an Owl!

 

Good luck :)

[Sheryl]

2 hours ago, angryfarang said:

Being unconscious isn't mild sedation to me.  I'll definitely skip any sedation.  I want to be awake for the whole thing and able to view it.

Believe me, you do not want to do this. excrutiatingly uncomfortable. And you may have trouble finding a doctor willing to do it unsedated...because it much increases the risk of perforation (patient can't keep still).

 

You will recveive a CD of it and can watch it all, comfortable, afterwards.

[nongsung]

I was as stubborn as you, didn't want this, didn't want that. Had a colonoscopy two weeks ago with 'mild sedation' was knocked out completely apart from that small gap when there was apparently not enough sedation. I can't describe the pain, it's the worst I have ever experienced.

 

[siam2007]

9 hours ago, angryfarang said:

 

Unfortunately that doctor isn't working on the only day I can visit.  The only one available is Dr. Charkaphan Osangthamnon

 

If you value your health then MAKE THE DAY AVAILABLE on which Dr. Thirdchai is working. Seriously, what else can be more important than your health? Other people would walk a Thousand Kilometers to have that done if they only could afford it. You will have to see him first anyway and then discuss further proceedings. usually a colonoscopy can be done just 2-3 days later.

And yes, you definitely DO WANT to have that slight sedation that will make you dizzy, believe me.

No need to worry. The worst thing is drinking that disgusting liquid 2-3 hours before, which is needed to entirely clean your intestine

 

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Edited January 25, 2017 by siam2007
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[angryfarang]

OK.  So what's wrong with  Dr. Charkaphan Osangthamnon ?   Is he not a very good doctor then?  Will he not give me the same treatment as Dr. Thirdchai.

[siam2007]

Just now, angryfarang said:

OK.  So what's wrong with  Dr. Charkaphan Osangthamnon ?   Is he not a very good doctor then?  Will he not give me the same treatment as Dr. Thirdchai.

 

 

I don't know him hence I cannot comment. But keep in mind even at Bumrungrad there are good and great Doctors as well as some not so great ones. That is why I personally value to learn from experiences of others and try to share share my own experiences as well.

Go to the Bumrungrad website to check the education and career of the Doc you want to see. I always do it that way (not only at Bumrungrad, Bangkok Hospital does have profiles of the physicians on their website too).

[chiang mai]

5 minutes ago, angryfarang said:

OK.  So what's wrong with  Dr. Charkaphan Osangthamnon ?   Is he not a very good doctor then?  Will he not give me the same treatment as Dr. Thirdchai.

He's a very capable professional, stay with your original plan.

[Sheryl]

Dr. Charkaphan Osangthamnont appears to be very well qualified.

 

I think siam007 was just trying to steer you towards a doctor that he personally had a positive experience with.

[angryfarang]

I'll see how I get on with Dr. Charkaphan Osangthamnont.  If the nurses start calling him "Dr Death" when he's not around, I'll start to get worried.  :)

And siam2007 - thanks for the advice, it is appreciated.  Friday really is the only day I can be there due to work/home/travel commitments.

 

It's funny, since I made the appointment, today I've had perfect bowel movements.

[siam2007]

18 minutes ago, Sheryl said:

Dr. Charkaphan Osangthamnont appears to be very well qualified.

 

I think siam007 was just trying to steer you towards a doctor that he personally had a positive experience with.

 

Thanks for making me the Thai version of JAMES BOND 

[jerojero]

If I get one, I'd rather not have general anesthesia.

Then expect some pain during the procedure.

[chiang mai]

I just had one done at RAM this morning, top and bottom, with sedation it was a breeze, it would have been a nightmare without.

[ammagic]

The sedation doesn't make you feel dizzy - you'll be fine. And definitely don't do it without sedation!

[blasteen]

Bumrungrad seems to be a good choice, prices should be pretty high though.  I saw the director of GI in Bangkok hospital with symptoms similar to you, she seems to be pretty busy so she just directed me to one of the other doctors in there. I wasn't really happy with the service I received from the doctor I saw in there, I am not really sure if that is the case with all doctors that work there are not. If you can afford the prices in Bumrungrad, then I guess its best to do it here, I  also saw Prof  Kladchareon there, he seemed like a good doctor. Doctors in BKK and Bumengrad are busy so you cant really expect a lengthy consultation, you might want to consider the GI doctors in Sukhumvit hospital, they are young but they know what they are doing and they take the time to explain everything to you in a helpful manner + its very cheap 

 

[angryfarang]

Bumrungrad was absolutely perfect.  The service was excellent, the doctor was fantastic.

I had some stool and blood tests done, an abdominal ultra sound & x-ray - and, the next next day at 8am, the dreaded colonoscopy....

 

The colonoscopy was easy, no issues at all.  I was sedated with pethidine, so didn't know much about the whole thing, nor did I feel any discomfort or pain (during or after)  I came round and had fully recovered within ten minutes and had no issue getting back to the hotel.  I was out shopping with the missus an hour later.  Easy.

I had a small polyp removed and that was it, everything else came back fine.   Very happy to have done it and will revisit in 5 years.

 

My issues look to be IBS or food allergy related so now I'm on an elimination diet.