Eye Care in India and Nepal
 

I have been diagnosed with a vitreous detachment, that may or may not cause problems on our 3 week trip to India and Nepal. If anyone has suggestions of how to find good eye clinics or medical centers, I would appreciate any advice. I just want to be prepared if something happens.

what about pressure from being in airplanes??

Has your doctor advised you that it is safe for you to travel, and esp to fly long-haul, as cabin pressure can affect pressure inside the eye. You might also want to ask your doctor whether the higher altitudes in Nepal may affect eye pressure? Have you asked your doctor for recommendations for qualified specialists in Nepal and India?

You should take a look at the website for the US embassy in Delhi and Kathmandu at http://usembassy.state.gov/delhi.htm and http://nepal.usembassy.gov/. Look “American Citizens Services” to see their list of doctors and hospitals. You could also try the websites for the embassies of the UK or Australia in India and Nepal, which often provide similar information.

I would next suggest that you make sure that your health insurance will cover you outside of the United Sates <u>AND</u> that it will pay for evacuation costs (i.e. plane fare) should you decide that you want to be treated elsewhere.

I travel a lot in India for business and pleasure and think it is a great country. However, my inclination, if I were seriously ill, would be to go to the airport and get on a plane to Bangkok or Singapore. There are excellent hospitals in both, and you can get to either city non-stop from many places in India (and to Bangkok from Nepal). In Bangkok, Bumrungrad Hospital is very good, see http://www.bumrungrad.com/. In Singapore, I would try Glen Eagles Hospital, see http://www.gleneagles.com.sg/. I don’t want to be alarmist; however, it would not be my choice to be hospitalized in India (and more so Nepal) if it were at all avoidable, or even to do much as an outpatient for something as serious as your condition. I love India a lot, but even Indians tend to go elsewhere for serious conditions like a heart bypass if they can afford it (an extremely common surgery in India given the diet there). Articles in <i>People Magazine</i> notwithstanding about US citizens traveling to India to have facelifts and other elective surgery done there, I don’t think the quality of health care is as good as elsewhere in Asia or compared to the US or Europe…Mumbai and Delhi may be the only exceptions, but even there you have to go to a private hospital and for eye care, you have to have a specialist.

Listen to Cicerone.
Tattoo her words on your arm.

A vitreous detachment may somewhat increase the risk of having a retinal detachment and possible permanent loss of vision in the eye. This risk however is quite small as millions of people each year are diagnosed with a PVD and the great majority have no problems. Watch for a marked increase of spots or flashing lights or a curtain or veil and seek help if such symptoms were to occur.
I would think that a University medical center in India would be one place to seek help. Bangkok, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Japan all have fairly good medical systems. Might want to check the American Academy of Ophthalmology web site for an Ophthalmologist near your travels in Nepal or India. Lastly altitude or flying will not affect your eye pressure in any meaningful way. Intraocular pressure also has no connection with a vitreous detachment.
I agree it would be nice to have evacuation insurance and health coverage while traveling.

Too much potential for a serious problem. Take care of it BEFORE you travel.

It's not easy to just go find a good eye surgeon in India and Nepal. I would not embark on such a trip with this hanging over my head.

Plus you'd have to have to cash to pay up front to get into the better private clinics.

Thank you for your suggestions. I am praying that I do not have troubles in India, but, if I do, I have more options today than I knew about yesterday.
I have been assured that I can currently fly, and had several flights this past weekend. This may or may not turn into a retinal detachment and I am consulting with an expert here, but cannot see him until shortly before our trip. We're going for our son's wedding reception in Kolkata, so the dates are already set and I do not want to miss this momentous occaision for our family.

I can see why you want to make the trip to India. FYI, the U.S. Consulate General in Kolkata (Calcutta) is at 5/1 Ho Chi Minh Sarani, 700071; telephone +91-33-3984-2400; fax +91-33-2282-2335. The web site is http://kolkata.usconsulate.gov.

Where are you staying Halvie? If you're at the Oberoi, for example, you can let them sort you out if anything happens. Oberoi guys and gals in Kolkata are very fine.

HiHalvie
When we were in the jungle in Nepal in February we met a very interesting Austrian guy who was leading a group of doctors on a little tour of Nepal. About 10 years ago he and a Nepalese colleague travelled from Austria to Nepal to start a medical centre. It is outside of Kathmandu and he is not the only person who recommended it to me. Unfortunately I cannot recall its name but I am sure it cannot be hard to find.

Thank you. We've been planning this trip for over a year, ever since our son got married in August 2007. My doctor told me that I have a small chance of having my retina detach, but one never knows. I truly appreciate all of your comments and advice.

One more piece of advice: Get good med evac insurance. That way, if there is a problem, you'll be able to be flown to a hospital that can care for you.

By the way, mjs has expertise in this area and he's given you some good info.

Thank you all for your suggestions!