Diagnosing Sciatica in Philippines

Thanks for posting my video! Good luck in getting better soon!

froggie from has written 8 comments

hi andy, firstly, sorry to here about your back problem but interesting also. i have had two spinal operations but still have the pain. i was taken aback to read of piriformis syndrone. ive never heard of it and its never been mentioned to me or suggested by doctors after 6 years of my back problems.so thankyou for this information, not something i thought i would be picking up from following your travels!......and andy ...another photo of you on your blog!! two now in as many weeks! what does this all mean??

Need a Second opinion?

St. Luke’s Hospital in Quezon City, just outside of Manila has treated me well for years.

Last year, while surfing off of Samar Island, I went over-the-falls and came down hard on my back and lower neck. The reef rash was pretty bad, but the tingling and numbness in my arms was what I was worried about. I got on a plane to Manila, and was at St. Luke’s six hours later. A neurologist ordered an MRI and other tests, and two other neurologists also evaluated the results. The cost was either $209 or $219 in pesos, including overnight.

Considering just signing your John Hancock on an ER admission form at Clarian or Community in Indianapolis will be $500+ …before any other treatment is done, I feel fortunate to have had such terrific healthcare without waiting for hours in an ER like some places I have been in IN over the years, and at an affordable price.

There are at least eight neurologists on the campus, and others associated with St. Luke’s. You might want to consult them.

While Bumrungrad may be a better option for someone who has a loved one who is a Thai clinical pharmacologist. I found the doctor who treated me there to have very poor English skills. I had a moderate Staph infection on my knee. His antibiotic regime seemed to be reasonable to me, but I would have liked to have a better discussion with him about other treatment options, and aftercare. Also I find their pricing structure is higher at Bumrungrad than either St. Luke’s or MMC.

Perhaps the horse has already left the barn, but maybe wearing a back brace or support might help prevent further damage and antagonism on you CNS? What about putting your gear on rollers?

Best health,

Vic

P.S. There are quite a few DAVs and retirees around Subic/Angeles, check out the VFWs and RAOs for spinal treatment options with guys who live there.

Gadget from has written 1,020 comments

I would not call this affordable, it is affordable to a person from the USA, however not affordable to the people who live in the Philippines.

I am an extremely wealthy and rich man in the Philippines.

I cannot afford medical treatment in my own country, the USA.

We are entering an age of global economics which will probably turn rich countries into poor countries, and poor countries into rich. Truly the price of medical care in the developed world is overpriced.

Andy HoboTraveler.com

Hi Andy. Sorry to hear about your back problems. I have had several surgeries myself, and actually got worse. Now they want me to do it again, no way.
Many people have found relief with the DRX9000. Not sure if it is available overseas, but if you google DRX9000, you can find lots of info and videos. This does the stretching thing you are talking about.
Hope you get it fixed soon and can walk pain free!

Fruugal from has written 49 comments

Andy, I had pain in my spine from nerve pressure. A Physical Therapist I worked with showed me how to use the door frame or any door opening to stretch my spine to help relieve the pressure. After a week of this stretching my pain was much relieved.

I hope the stretching helps you too!

Motorcycle Bob from has written 85 comments

I had issues with leg pain etc similar to what you describe. No back pain though. This started after getting a cramp in what I later found out was the piriformis muscle due to some minor physical trauma. I was on a bike at the time and had to push throught the cramp. I felt the muscle *give* and everything was fine. Except I ended up with numbness, and various other issues. Nothing major in my case, but a serious anoyance.

Stretching, similar to what was in the video helped a lot. Over the years, the problems have mostly gone away, other than some numness on the skin of my leg in a few places, one small patch in which the hair all fell out. I dont know if the stretching helped cure the problem, but it definitely reduced the symptoms. I found that almost any stretch that I could feel in the periformis muscle helped. I also sometimes used a tennis ball to masage the muscle if it felt tight. I can even use a hard chair to massage it.

I dont know if you have this other problem, but I sometimes get serious pain in the muscle behind the shoulder blade. I was shown by a physical therapist that if you put a tennis ball in a sock (just to hold it, not necessary) and either lean against a wall or lay on it, you can use it to massage the muscle. Works wonders for me. I suppose this method could be used for any hard to reach place that needs massaging.

Gadget from has written 1,020 comments

I was in a motorcycle accident 30 years ago, I broke my Fermur in four places and have had small numbness in the left side ever since.

I am 100 percent sure this is exacerbating my sciatica nerve problems and also causes me a headache with the doctors. For some reason they refuse to touch the problem areas and will not feel to the huge knot in my femur.

I forced the Physical therapist hand on the nodule or cycst yesterday because she could not find it..

The doctors are not collecting information well, it was impossible in the Thailand language to force them to do their job. However, here in the Philippines I can force them through their mental gaps.

Yes, an extremely bad accident that broke my femur is effecting this sitution.

Andy