Wellington
Forum Replies Created
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8 month post-op Kang repair: everything is good!
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One year update after Dr Kang surgery:
Everything is well! Hope the best for you all!
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@Max
: The updated contact info for Gibbeum Hospital will be here:
http://gibbeum.com/abroad/From-abroad.php#Reservation
I don’t see Stephen’s name on there now, so it might have been updated with a new contact person. It just shows this email now: gibbeumhospital0@naver.com
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DAY #39 post op- just follow up with you all, everythings great!
Hoping for the best for you as well.
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Day #71 post op: Just following up: everything is wonderful- zero symptoms. You would never even know there was a hernia before.
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I just had non-mesh done with Dr Kang in South Korea. Very nice,
See my experience here on this post:
https://herniatalk.com/forums/topic/non-mesh-with-dr-kang-in-korea-journal-updates/
herniatalk.com
Non-mesh with Dr Kang in Korea Journal/Updates - Hernia Discussion - Hernia Talk
Non-mesh with Dr Kang in Korea Journal/Updates - Hernia Discussion - Hernia Talk
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DAY # 8 after surgery: Just had my follow-up appointment with Dr. Kang. We did an ultrasound: Everything looks great! Dr said it is ok to wash surgical site. Also said I can go to sauna and do light exercise. He said I can gradually start heavy exercise and heavy lifting next week.
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DAY # 6 Post op – everything is great. Took the train around the city. Got a follow up appointment with Dr. Kang tomorrow. I am not taking anymore medications.
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Day #4 post op: Getting better. Pain is even less than previous day. No problems. Going for walks throughout the day.
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DAY # 5 post-op: everything is looking great. No complaints at all.
Interesting note: before surgery, there were some annoying symptoms such as bloating and abdominal pain. Now, after surgery, I do not have any of those symptoms anymore. 👍
Surgical site seems fine, very small incision. No bleeding at all since day of surgery.
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Day #3 after surgery: Everything seems fine. Pain is minimal. The surgical site just feels like a sore muscle after working out. I am able to walk around smoothly. There is no swelling.
I am still taking it easy , so no jumping or running or anything like that yet!
I should also note that there has been zero swelling since day #1.
The doctor said to apply ice to the area on first day, but then to start using heat pads on the area after that. So today I am applying some heat to the area.
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I came from USA.
Recovery is looking good so far. I am taking it easy, just doing a little walking.
Still taking ibuprofen as per instructions,
Three times a day. Also taking laxatives as per instructions- Had two bowel movements.
Diet- they said i can eat anything- no dietary restriction.
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See attached photo here for report from surgery
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I had no concerns with the method used by Dr Kang. As you may know, he is one of the surgeons who is considered an expert on hernia treatments. He used prolene sutures. So if im not mistaken, that (prolene) is what adds support to the area in lieu of mesh. Maybe Dr Towfigh or someone can explain it here? By the way, Dr Kang did post on this forum some time in the past, not sure how often he looks at this forum.
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Day #22 after surgery: very happy with results. No pain, no complaints.
I might have mentioned earlier, but will mention this again:
A few years before the surgery I would get a strange annoying abdominal pain , felt like abdominal bloating throughout abdomen. This pain would be off and on, mainly when the hernia would bulge out a bit. It was not severe pain, but was annoying. Ever since surgery, this pain has never came back.
As a side note, the scar is also very small, almost unnoticeable. Incision was not more than 4cm.
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$2500 for surgery
+ $500 if they find/remove lipoma during surgery
Plane ticket: $1200
Hotels: you can expect about $115 per night average. You can get some decent places for as low as $50–$70 per night. A place called “Urbanstay” for example: It had contactless checkin and checkout. So basically when it is time for you to check in, they email you the code to unlock the door to your room.
Food/taxi/etc: $40/day
You can probably save a lot if you use bus and train, but I preferred taxi because it was just easier.
A taxi ride for 20 minutes was around $6USD.
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Day #14 after surgery: back home now!
Long flight from Korea. Everything is great!
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Useful apps for travel to Korea:
Papago : translation app. It can scan photos of text and translate to English. It can also translate conversations from both languages.
Uber: extremely important to have for getting taxi.
Maps/ Google maps or similar apps: this will help you get around while you walk around the city.
Currency (its an offline currency converter app): helps you get familiar with the currency values.
There are currency exchange places all over the city.
Subway korea: this app shows you the subway system with live updates.
Communication; recommend to get a sim card at the airport (choose E-SIM) if possible just for ease of use.
There is free wifi almost everywhere in the city.
Regarding the hospital contact and scheduling, see here:
http://gibbeum.com/abroad/From-abroad.php#Reservation
They seem to update this often. Last time, before I traveled, they had a different contact information.
Anyways, they had an english speaker who helped coordinate scheduling for me. They also helped me get around and communicate at the hospital.
Hotels: there are many hotels nearby. I used the “Agoda” app- it was super easy to use and book using the app. You can browse by location and view spots on the map to find places nearby. “Fraser place namdaemon” is a really nice hotel. It is not far from hospital. Takes maybe 30-45 mins by taxi. Traffic is always congested there. But any hotel would be fine. If you want to be close to hospital then stay south of the river to avoid some traffic since the hospital is south of the river.
Finding the hospital: The easiest way is to take a taxi. I highly recommend using the app like uber to avoid communication errors. However, when you arrive by taxi, make sure you can see the hospital before you get out of the car. For some reason, the taxis would seem to make a mistake even when following the address on their uber app. They would drive somewhere near the hospital and stop there. I don’t know why and could not clearly communicate with them due to language barrier. Address is:
4 Seochojungang-ro, Seocho-gu, Seoul.
It might help to take few screenshots of the hospital on google maps so you can show the driver if they get the wrong place. Try to get the screenshots with Korean text because most of them won’t know how to read english letters.
See map here; http://gibbeum.com/abroad/From-abroad.php#Location
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DAY # 11 after surgery:
Everything is great! There is no tightness or pulling around the repair.
I wish more people knew about Dr. Kang repair. I would have done this surgery a long time ago if I knew about it. I put off surgery for many years because I never found any technique that seemed ideal.
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DAY # 7 post op- everything is wonderful. Follow up appointment with Dr. Kang is actually tomorrow (not today). I am doing normal activities, but still nothing strenuous.
I plan to stay in Korea for one more week.