Planning limb lengthening treatment abroad

AAOS patient information on medical tourism says that safe and reasonable medical travel requires significant up-front planning. For limb lengthening that planning covers a long period: treatment continues for months after the operation, with follow-up and rehabilitation throughout, and part of it may take place after you return home.

This guide covers what to research before travelling. The practical arrangements for the recovery period itself — mobility aids, where you will stay, emergency contacts — are covered in Preparing for recovery.

The organisation you find online may not be the one that operates, runs rehabilitation or arranges accommodation. A LimbAtlas profile records these separately, as far as the provider's sources say: where surgery takes place, the rehabilitation setting, the accommodation arrangement and the international patient support. Provider, hospital, surgeon explains each role.

The CDC notes that people travelling for treatment often use private companies or medical concierge services to identify healthcare professionals or clinics. LimbAtlas lists such organisations as medical travel organizations, separately from the providers that deliver care, and does not itself arrange travel or contact providers on anyone's behalf.

AAOS suggests researching both the clinician and the facility, and names accrediting groups for overseas facilities, including Joint Commission International, DNV GL International Accreditation for Hospitals and the International Society for Quality in Healthcare. The CDC notes that the American College of Surgeons recommends internationally accredited facilities, and cautions that accreditation does not guarantee a good outcome. It also refers to specialty certification of the professionals providing care.

On a profile, the Facilities section shows where the provider's sources say surgery takes place — within the provider's own organisation, at a named separate hospital, in a hospital mentioned but not identified, or not publicly stated. Where the hospital is not named, asking which facility will be used is the first step to checking it.

AAOS suggests deciding in advance how you will communicate with the care team if you do not speak the local language, noting that even if your physician speaks English, other members of the care team may not. An integrative review of studies on medical tourists' experiences identified language as the most commonly reported barrier.

Profiles keep apart the languages the clinical team communicates in directly, the languages covered by an international office, coordinator or interpreter service, and the languages of the provider's website. They also show the international patient support level, whether a coordinator is stated and any transport the sources name. Understanding accommodation and patient support explains these fields.

The CDC suggests coordinating local follow-up care before travel and discussing the plan for addressing complications both with the treating provider abroad and with a healthcare professional at home. AAOS notes that many hospitals and physicians in the United States are reluctant to provide care for procedures performed elsewhere, especially if medical records are not available or are in another language.

The integrative review identified continuity of care after returning home as a concern reported by medical tourists. Some providers state that they accept patients operated on elsewhere for rehabilitation or follow-up; Accepting patients operated on elsewhere explains what that can and cannot cover.

AAOS suggests obtaining a copy of all your medical records from the facility before returning home, and the CDC, writing for travellers from the United States, suggests requesting them in English so that doctors at home can use them. If your doctors at home work in another language, it is worth asking which languages records can be provided in.

AAOS notes that the cost of managing complications may not be covered by insurance and suggests reviewing your health insurance policy to find out what, if anything, is covered; the CDC notes that travellers might need supplemental cover, including medical evacuation insurance. AAOS also notes that travel can carry its own risks, including blood clots in patients returning home on long flights. When it is appropriate to travel is a question for the treating team.