India
Eye surgery is just one of the advanced treatments offered in India, where top doctors commandeer the latest technologies. The Aravind Eye Care System, centred in Madurai but with hospitals around India, is a remarkable program originally designed to minimise unnecessary blindness. In addition to foreigners, it has helped more than 2.4 million poor Indians to see in the past 30 years
Bangkok, Thailand
Back in 1984, pop singer Murray Head noted that "one night in Bangkok makes a hard man humble". Oh, but Bangkok makes a hard man so much more than that. Welcome to Thailand, the sex-change capital of the world. Bangkok's specialist surgeons can perform the task of gender reassignment with a few deft scalpel slices. If your medical concerns spring from something other than gender confusion, Thailand is also famous for heart surgery, eye surgery and more
Beijing, China
Experiencing acupuncture in its home setting just feels right — especially when you get the balms, oils and smelly unguents of traditional Chinese medicine. Since 1975, Beijing has been home to the International Acupuncture Training Centre, a school for foreign doctors who want to have a stab at it. There are many treatment centres about the city. And, along with this ancient Chinese wisdom, the People's Republic is pioneering stem-cell treatments, offering patients with the gravest conditions a chance to try new treatments banned by their home governments
Colombia
North Americans and others head to Colombia for complex treatments performed by crack doctors at bargain rates. Cities such as Bogotá, Colombia's capital, offer a wide variety of medical treatments and operations. Specialities in Colombia include joint surgeries, and getting a hip replaced or "resurfaced" costs one-fifth of the cost of US hospitals, while the prosthetics used are of high international quality. Many Colombian doctors are foreign-trained as well. Colombia is also often visited for procedures that range from dentistry and cosmetic surgery to open-heart surgery
Nuuk, Greenland
If you happen to be in Greenland and, say, a polar bear bites your arm off, don't just leave it there! Dronning Ingrids Hospital, in the south-western capital of Nuuk, is the main hospital on this frigid maritime landmass, and is specially distinguished for performing special operations requiring very low temperatures (such as reattaching severed limbs). Built in 1954, the Dronning Ingrids doesn't need air-conditioning, and the heating system prevents any contaminated airflow.
Tehran, Iran
Plastic surgery in Tehran is indeed big business these days. Nose jobs are seen as especially important, interestingly enough. For Muslim women in the Islamic Republic, a nose is often one of the few body parts to be visible; however, Iranian men, too, think that improvising their own classic Persian noses can make them somehow more seductive. Iranian plastic surgeons do lifts, chin implants, tummy tucks and almost everything else that's done in the West, but for less.
Cuba
If you arrive on a communist-run island and have your passport and money confiscated by the authorities, one might say it just comes with the territory — or, you might actually be at Cuba's addiction rehabilitation clinics, where it's often standard procedure. Frequented by ordinary folks and famous figures, too, Cuba's rehab villas are renowned for their professional service and effectiveness — along with a price of around half what a restive stay will cost you in the US. Rehab here mixes balmy island living with no-nonsense regimes for keeping you stone-cold sober in seclusion.
Skopje, Macedonia
For a decade, UN and NATO employees in the Balkans, as well as expats, have hit the Macedonian capital for affordable, high-quality dental work. Macedonian dentists are generally well trained, and many speak English. Everything from check-ups and fillings to implant work and cosmetic dentistry is available, and at prices significantly less than in Western Europe or North America. Skopje is conveniently situated en route for travellers passing through south-eastern Europe, and offers a mix of history and nightlife.
Israel
Israel's state-of-the-art medical facilities have made it the destination of choice for many medical tourists. Although it's generally not a bargain, the services are wide and the skill level high. Everything from IVF fertilisation to advanced cancer therapy is done here. Plus, the salt and unique nutrients in Israel's Dead Sea make this a much-visited place for those with skin problems, as well as rheumatologic and lung conditions — and floating effortlessly on this super-saline body of water, amazingly situated below sea level, is a therapeutic experience in itself.
Malaysia
Mix procedures with pleasures in Malaysia, another leading destination for medical travellers. Places like the beach resort town of Penang, on the country's north-western coast, are popular for breast-enhancement surgery, and package-tour companies even offer such trips. It's convenient that a recuperative beach vacation is included, since doctors warn that long plane journeys after surgery can cause thrombosis. The dynamic capital, Kuala Lumpur, home to the Petronas Towers — the world's tallest twin towers, some 451.9m high — is where more complex procedures (such as brain surgery) are performed.
This is an edited extract from
Lonely Planet's Best in Travel 2010: 850 trends, destinations, journeys and experiences for the upcoming year, Lonely Planet Publications, 2009. $24.99.
Related links:
Safari and surgery holidays
Nip, tuck and Thai
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