Future direction of pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD)

by Somjate Manipalviratn, M.D.| Superior A.R.T

Comparative Genomic Hybridization (CGH)

A significant proportion of unsuccessful pregnancy is caused by numerical chromosome imbalance or aneuploidy supported by the evidence that >50% of fif irst trimester abortuses are aneuploidy. FISH was introduced to reveal aneuploidy in embryos in order to improve the pregnancy success. However, whether PGD using FISH technique will improve pregnancy rate of IVF treatmentcycle is still controversial due to its limitation in the number of chromosome studied. This is limited by the number of distinct fluorochromes which are available to label the DNA probes.

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PGD-PCR success for VHL disease : A case report from Superior A.R.T.

by Piyaphan Punyatanasakchai, M.D. | Superior A.R.T.

Abstract : Von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) is a rare autosomal dominant genetic condition involving the abnormal growth of blood vessels result in little knots which are called angiomas or hemangioblastomas in some parts of the body which are particularly rich in blood vessels such as in the cerebellum, spinal cord, kidney and retina. These abnormal vessels usually occur in the retina. As a result, loss of visions is very common. Some of these tumors are benign, while others are cancerous.

There is a wide variation in the age of onset of the disease, the organ system affected and the severity of effect. This disease is caused by mutation of the Von Hipple-Lindau tumor suppressor (VHL) gene on the short arm of chromosome 3. About 80% of cases were inherited this mutation gene from one of their parents. ICSI and Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD) with PCR technique is a method to avoid VHL gene transmission from the parents to the child. A 37 years old healthy woman and her 37 years old husband who has experienced multiple organ tumors from VHL has come to Superior ART to consult about their plan to have unaffected child(ren) since last year. They have one child, 2 years old, who also has got VHL mutated gene transmitted from his father.

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Treating Cervical Cancer at Wattanosoth Hospital

by Bangkok Hospital Medical Center

Cervical Cancer is the most common cancer found in Thai women and women in developing country. Those in lower social groups are more at risk. Luckily about 80% of cervical cancer can be prevented, provided an annual pelvic examination is taken to check for abnormal cells. Laurence Civil recently met with Dr. Viruch Charoeniam, Gynecological Oncologist, Wattanosoth Hospital.

“Women who are sexually active before the age of 18 years old are most likely to be at risk due to tissue damage allowing the infection to enter the body,” says Dr Viruch. “Likewise those who have had multiple sex partners; those who have only had one sex partner but he had multiple sex partners; those who smoke and anyone who have continuously taken oral contraception for a period of more than five years.”

He explained that cervical cancer can’t be prevented but research suggests that sexual activity and the physical effect of giving birth has on the body increases the risk.

“At puberty the columnar cells in the cervix change to squamous cells” he say ” This is the normal process in healthy women, however if they are infected with HPV it becomes pathological and the cells become premalignant. This is precancerous lesions which are medically called CIN(Cervical intraepithelial neoplasia or dysplasia ). These precancerous cells can progress to cancer, which usually occure approximately 3-5 years after high grade lesion .”

There are three stages in the development of CIN. At the first stage, clinically known as CIN1 the abnormal cells are no more than 1/3 of thickness of cervix covering. It is usual that the area is also infected with the wart virus. 50 – 80 % of women with grade 1 disease will normally recover if there body has strong immunity.

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A Man With HEART | Bangkok Hospital Medical Center | Thailand

by Arthit Khwankhom | Bangkok Hospital Medical Center
Looking for the best heart surgeon in town? Kitipan Visudharom, better known as “Dr. Kit V Arom”, would be the very first one recommended by international patients who have undergone heart surgery in Bangkok.

Actually, he has gained a reputation as Bangkok’s leading cardiothoracic (heart and chest) surgeon only in recent year-30 years before, his patients and medical colleagues recognized him as one of the best surgeons in Minnesota (the US)

What’s the proof? How about his being a recipient of the 1999 Minnesota Humanitarian Award, the first non-American winner of this prestigious honour, which is conferred annually to the two most outstanding figures in the state, one in medicine and the other in humanitarian advocacy.

Several years ago, during his three decades living and working in the US, where heart disease was and still is a leading cause of death, Kitipan founded two important medical organizations contributing to the improvement of professional practice in the treatment of heart disease.

Kitipan, who declines to give his age, saying only he is married with two grown-up sons, is the founder of both the Minneapolis Heart Institute & Minneapolis Heart Institution Foundation and the Minnesota Society of heart disease.

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New Medical Horizons in Global Health Care

Health care in the 21st century offers more choices, opportunities, and options than ever before.  Not too long ago, medical tourism wasn’t taken very seriously, and the most common foreign destinations for travelers were limited to locations in Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore. Today, medical tourism is the wave of the future in health care, with new facilities offering top class, state of the art and high-tech services in locations such as the Barbados, Costa Rica, Croatia, Jordan, South Africa and South Korea.

Physicians and surgeons providing services in excellent health care facilities, spas, and medical retreats now offer a wealth of options for individuals found in hundreds of regions across the world, attracting not only locals, but international travelers from the western hemisphere to quality and compassionate health care.

Cost perspectives in this new era of medical tourism offer affordable yet world-class treatments and procedures to individuals in a variety of medical fields, including orthopedics, obesity and weight loss, cosmetic dentistry, cosmetic and plastic surgical procedures, cardiac care, and stem cell research.

Individuals around the world can now access superlative healthcare without fearing bankruptcy. Europeans and inhabitants of Russia and Southeast Asia are flocking to superlative healthcare facilities in Turkey, Croatia, India, and Thailand and Singapore for cutting edge technology and effective treatments for a variety of illness and disease processes by compassionate, certified and accredited surgeons, medical staff, and facilities focused on the medical needs and comfort of international travelers.

According to the Medical Tourism Association, the next decade will bring an explosion in international healthcare capabilities and options, with over 16,000,000 Americans alone are expected to travel to foreign destinations for their medical care. An equal number of individuals from other countries around the world are also expected to travel to regional or international destinations as well.

The upcoming second Annual World Medical Tourism And Global Health Conference is expected to attract over 2000 attendees from 50 different countries, including healthcare experts, Health Ministers, Ministers of Tourism, presidents, vice presidents and medical experts from Africa, Russia, Japan, China, South America, and central European countries. Increasing numbers of insurance companies and insurance providers from around the world are adding medical tourism benefits to their policies. The uninsured and underinsured benefit greatly by these increased options for healthcare.

The Asian Medical tourism industry is expected to reach nearly $10 billion by 2013 and health tourism in Mexico, Central America and South America is not far behind. Countries in Central Europe are seeing the enormous benefit of providing world class medical facilities, procedures and travel packages to international travelers, among them Croatia, the Ukraine, and Turkey.

Increasing numbers of healthcare facilities around the world are now seeking international accreditation and certification by world-renowned organizations such as the Joint Commissions International and the World Health Organization, ensuring and enhancing confidence in services, education and training of healthcare providers around the globe.

The benefits and attraction of combining the best that tourist destinations have to offer with quality, affordable and effective medical procedures is attracting young and old alike.

PlacidWay, a medical tourism portal based in Denver, Colorado is dedicated to making affordable health care accessible to all, regardless of geography or culture. Providing reliable, up-to-date, and detailed information regarding medical procedures and techniques, facilities, and training and certification of doctors and surgeons from around the world gives people today more options regarding their healthcare choices.

Please Click here to request more information.

Breast Augmentation Package in Thailand from 120,000 Baht

Bangkok Medical Center (BMC) is one of the most technologically advanced hospitals in medicine today. Located in Bangkok, Thailand, BMC is an expansive state-of-the-art medical campus that provides the most comprehensive medical care available anywhere. Composed of four hospitals and a broad range of specialized clinics, BMC is JCI accredited and has delivered world class, award winning health care since 1972.

Now Offering Best Breast Augmentation Package

IPD Case 1 night : 120,000 Baht only…

The Package Includes :

• Accommodation for 1 nights in the surgical floor including : Room, Nursing Service Charges, Service Charges, Regular menu food charges
• Operating Room Charges ; OR Room Use, Recovery Room, Scrub & Circulate Nurse
• Medical Equipment and Medical Supplies necessary for the procedure
• Medications : Routine medication used
• Anesthesia : Pre-Anesthetic Drugs, Anesthesia, Medical Gas (Oxygen, Nitrous Oxide)
• Doctor Fees : Surgeon, Anesthesiologist

The Package Excludes :

• Take home medications and supplies
• Laboratory Testing necessary for the procedure if required by surgeon as CBC, PT & PTT, Urianalysis, Anti HIV
• Radiology Studies : Chest X-ray, if required
• Other charges not related to the procedures
• Charges for other procedure or other plastic surgery
• Charges for OPD incurred prior to the surgery
• Charges for inpatient stays in excess of 1 nights. Additional charges for these days including room and other charges will be added to the package price at a normal hospital rates
• Charges for intensive care, if necessary
• Items of a personal nature such as in-room drinks, telephone charges and guest meals will be charged at the normal rates in effect

Notice :
The package is applicable for elective, uncomplicated patients. Patients with the following conditions are considered to be complex or high risk cases and will not qualify for the package: Bleeding Disorders Patients with underlying severe medical problems such as HIV and uncontrolled diabetes.

* Package is valid till June 30th, 2009.

Please Click here to request more information about Breast Augmentation Package in Thailand.

Babies on the Way : Fertility Treatment Options for the 21st Century

by PlacidWay

Infertility is a subject that many couples don’t want to discuss, but it’s an issue that millions of couples around the world deal with on a daily basis. The causes of infertility are numerous, from lack of ovulation to low sperm counts in men. Infertility is not just a woman’s problem, but because of basic anatomy and physiology, women’s ‘plumbing’ so to speak, is more complex and therefore apt to contribute more difficulties to conception than males.

Increase Your Chances of Conception
However, there’s hope on the horizon – new techniques and options in infertility are available not only in the U.S. but also around the world.

Common treatments today include:

• IVF (in vitro fertilization)
• OI (Ovulation induction)
• Clomid treatments
• AI (artificial insemination)
• ICSI (intracytoplasmic sperm injection)
• IUI (intrauterine insemination)
• Alternative Medicines

Whether you’re in your twenties or your forties, couples are finding new techniques to help their dreams of parenthood come true. Most fertility treatments help to increase the development of eggs within the ovary, which help to promote the chances of one of those eggs being fertilized by a sperm. For women who don’t have regular monthly cycles to those who just can’t seem to conceive due to ovulation difficulties, fertility treatments can help.

Treatments with drugs or medications are usually the first step, in an effort to try and stimulate and induce ovulation. These types of drugs are designed for women who have been diagnosed with ovulation difficulties and offers about an 80% success rate. Women who experience difficulties with follicle development, and thereby ovulation problems, may benefit from ovulation induction therapies, where hormones are given to stimulate follicle and egg development.

Intrauterine insemination is generally the next step in the infertility treatment process, also known as artificial insemination. Women experiencing fallopian tube defects or damage, as well as those with poor egg quality often benefit from this type of therapy. At this point, treatments can become quite expensive. Next often comes in vitro fertilization. This involves placement of an already fertilized egg into the woman’s uterus for implantation.

Please Click here to read more about ‘Babies on the Way : Fertility Treatment Options for the 21st Century’

Breast Augmentation Package in Thailand from 120,000 Baht

Bangkok Medical Center (BMC) is one of the most technologically advanced hospitals in medicine today. Located in Bangkok, Thailand, BMC is an expansive state-of-the-art medical campus that provides the most comprehensive medical care available anywhere. Composed of four hospitals and a broad range of specialized clinics, BMC is JCI accredited and has delivered world class, award winning health care since 1972.

Now Offering Best Breast Augmentation Package

IPD Case 1 night : 120,000 Baht only…

The Package Includes :

• Accommodation for 1 nights in the surgical floor including : Room, Nursing Service Charges, Service Charges, Regular menu food charges
• Operating Room Charges ; OR Room Use, Recovery Room, Scrub & Circulate Nurse
• Medical Equipment and Medical Supplies necessary for the procedure
• Medications : Routine medication used
• Anesthesia : Pre-Anesthetic Drugs, Anesthesia, Medical Gas (Oxygen, Nitrous Oxide)
• Doctor Fees : Surgeon, Anesthesiologist

The Package Excludes :

• Take home medications and supplies
• Laboratory Testing necessary for the procedure if required by surgeon as CBC, PT & PTT, Urianalysis, Anti HIV
• Radiology Studies : Chest X-ray, if required
• Other charges not related to the procedures
• Charges for other procedure or other plastic surgery
• Charges for OPD incurred prior to the surgery
• Charges for inpatient stays in excess of 1 nights. Additional charges for these days including room and other charges will be added to the package price at a normal hospital rates
• Charges for intensive care, if necessary
• Items of a personal nature such as in-room drinks, telephone charges and guest meals will be charged at the normal rates in effect

Notice :
The package is applicable for elective, uncomplicated patients. Patients with the following conditions are considered to be complex or high risk cases and will not qualify for the package: Bleeding Disorders Patients with underlying severe medical problems such as HIV and uncontrolled diabetes.

* Package is valid till June 30th, 2009.

Please Click Here to request more information about Breast Augmentation Package from Bangkok Hospital Medical Center.

Exclusive Ultimate LASIK Package

Ultimate Lasik Treatment in BHT 79,500.00 only…

Your Eyes Deserve the Best

Near-sightedness, far-sightedness, and astigmatism are referred to as “lower order” aberration. In addition to these, our eyes have complex “higher order” aberrations that are not correctable with glasses or contact lenses but can also decrease our quality of vision. In Ultimate LASIK, “Higher order” aberrations are first diagnosed and measured using a wavefront map. This Wavefront map is created by bouncing harmless light rays off the patient’s retina.  Results are then fed into a complex computation program, which calculates a superior ablation profile that not only attempts to retain the natural shape of the cornea but also targets any previous aberrations within a patient’s eye. In addition, the higher speed of the laser shortens the surgery time to provide greater patient comfort and increased reliability. Ultimate LASIK combines the benefits of both Optimization and Wavefront and often provides the best opportunity for superior vision.

Advantages of Ultimate LASIK Treatment

• Treats near-sightedness, far-sightedness, and astigmatism
• Optimization: Designed to Maintain Natural Corneal Shape
• Wavefront: Treatment of Higher-order Aberrations

The Best Technology for your Eyes
TRSC International LASIK Center offers a variety of different technologies. Although newer advanced technologies offer increased opportunity for excellent vision, the necessity for using them varies with the individual qualities of each patient’s eyes (such as spectacle prescription, pupil size, corneal thickness, internal higher-order aberrations, and corneal curvature), TRSC’s LASIK Refractive Surgery Specialists will consult with each patient and help guide their decision in order to provide the best possible results.

TRSC the LASIK Expertise
Technology selection is in fact only one aspect that can affect the outcome of LASIK surgery. It is equally important to select the right LASIK Center. TRSC’s Refractive Specialist Team pioneered LASIK treatment in Thailand and is composed entirely of corneal and refractive specialists who are experts in the field of LASIK refractive surgery. Their experience of having performed surgery on tens of thousands of eyes makes the TRSC medical team honored and well respected among ophthalmologists, and they regularly receive invitations to give lectures at various institutions in Thailand and abroad.

TRSC aspires to give each and every our patient “Lifetime Service for Lifetime Satisfaction.” Through this policy, TRSC has exceeded all international standards of safety and has demonstrated success rates far beyond those of other LASIK Centers. TRSC is leading Asia in the field of LASIK and is the first LASIK Center in Asia to be certified by the International Organization of Standards (ISO 9001:2000), an award given for exceeding high safety standards. TRSC was also recently selected by “Superbrands” as the LASIK Center of choice for Thailand after being chosen in an independent poll that was conducted of 1,000 representatives of the Thai population and a further selection process by a carefully selected panel of experts. This choice was given based on quality, reliability, trust, and service.

Please Click Here to request more information from TRSC Internation LASIK Center

Affordable Lasik Surgery in Bangkok, Thailand

by TRSC International LASIK Center

TRSC has served more than 3000 international patients to date. We have patients traveling from USA, UK, Japan, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and the neighboring countries in Asia such as Singapore, Hong Kong, China, Malaysia and Indonesia.

A recent TRSC research showed that nearly 30% of our patients are international visitors to Thailand. It can be categorized into 2 groups of patients. First are the patients who are traveling to Bangkok for a combined visit for leisure and LASIK at TRSC and the other group is traveling to Bangkok only for LASIK treatment due to our reputation, great service and lower cost. Most of these are referrals from past patients who are very satisfied with the results of their LASIK treatments.

Majority of our international patients have chosen TRSC for the LASIK surgery as we are refractive surgery specialists. TRSC does not provide a wide-range of eye treatments as do hospitals or other private clinics. TRSC has become very skilled in this regard due to such a narrow focus. Apart from LASIK, we also provide other means of vision correction such as PRK, NV LASIK, Phakic IOL and cataract surgery. Depending on patient eye measurements, some of the following other vision correction options may better suited for patients. The surgeon will be able to provide more information as to which procedure is right for you. 

Over the last few years Thailand has become a hub for medical tourists from all around Asia and the rest of the world. A TRSC study showed that our international patients travel to TRSC for LASIK treatment due to various reasons. The two most important being the experience of the surgeon, and the price. We offer LASIK at at fraction of the cost back home with the same or better medical equipment and technology  Services are of excellent quality and we can be available at short notice unlike, long waiting lists for surgery in western countries with government-regulated healthcare.

Patients also come to Thailand from all over the world not just for LASIK at TRSC, but they can combine other medical services in Bangkok on the same trip. As an added bonus, they can enjoy the holidays in the beautiful country of Thailand for the same cost that will pay for only the treatment back home.

Please CLICK HERE to request additional information or to setup an appointment with TRSC International LASIK Center