Dr Franz Birkholtz (Pretoria, South Africa)

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IMO people considering the doctor in Spain for his price should consider Birkholtz instead. He is in the same price range. Monegal's price is a little cheaper but doesn't include very expensive physio out of hospital, very expensive accommodation after surgery, wheelchair, medication and Xrays. IMO Birkholtz is a very good option because he is honest, professional and caring and has a very nice personality. It's a pity he works in Africa.

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Quote from: axelf on January 14, 2016, 05:14:00 PM"medication within reason" I love it 

Could you elaborate a bit further on what kind of accommodation that is?

It would typically be a selfcatering apartment (ground level) in a safe and secure gated community close to the hospital.

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Quote from: LLuser1 on January 14, 2016, 07:19:41 PM It's a pity he works in Africa.

What do you mean with that comment.?
SA is his country and thats where he works. Simple as that. You do realize that part of the affordable price is the fact that the SA currency is weak. Accordingly, his price would have been much higher had he worked in another country. He could probably work in the Netherlands, do you think if he goes there it would be the same price ?

As I wrote at the thread about Dr. Mitkovic, there are historic and economic and social factors why a country is..well fked up. And that does not mean that brilliant people are not born in these countries every day. In the choice of doctors, what is important is the experience and the technology of the doctor. If these are top, unless the country is in very bad situation, like in a civil war where it is dangerous to go, I see no problem. And I dont think SA is in such shape I went there for the World Cup 6 years ago and I felt totally safe and had the time of my life.

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Quote from: Franz on March 10, 2015, 07:46:49 PMHi guys,

We've looked at the numbers again. There is currently a lot of volatility in the international currency exchange rates. For this reason we have decided to change our costing model so that the quoted price is in South African Rand (ZAR). We pay the subcontractors in Rand so it makes sense to peg the price locally. This will obviously make our prices more competitive to some people and less so to others.
Secondly, we have started a second office at the brand new state of the art Mediclinic Midstream Hospital with fantastic facilities. We will be offering our CLL services at this hospital. It is more upmarket and discreet. The price quoted is for a private room in this facility (flat screen tv, private bathroom etc).
Remember that although we are getting progressively more known for internal lengthening with Precice, we have had many years of experience with the Ilizarov method, Taylor Spatial Frame, Truelok and Truelok Hex frames as well as other techniques. Therefore we can offer a high level of expertise and care should you require external fixator based treatment.
Lastly, we have decided to include all medical related costs into our package price estimates, but to leave accommodation costs out for now. The issue with accommodation is that the cost can vary widely depending on the option chosen. We can however put you in touch with relevant facilities that provide accommodation services.
The package includes:
- all hospital fees
- surgeon, assistant and anaesthetic fees
- prosthesis (implant) fees
- multidisciplinary team support
- physio daily in hospital and 3-5 days per week as outpatient
- regular doctor and nursing follow ups
- xray follow ups
- walking frame and wheelchair rental

For Precice 2 femorals it works out to 550K ZAR. Current exchange rate = 45800 USD.
Externals only: 300K ZAR. Current exchange rate = 25000 USD.
LON/LATP: 400K ZAR. Current exchange rate = 33000 USD.

I hope this clears up some confusion.

I searched and couldn't find the post, but the accomodation included is 90 days (3 months) right?

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Jip, couple of day before. 5 days in hospital and the rest of the 90 days until the visa expires.

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Quote from: Franz on January 20, 2016, 07:48:49 PMJip, couple of day before. 5 days in hospital and the rest of the 90 days until the visa expires.

Is food included for 3 months? If not, what are food prices like in SA?

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Dr Birkholtz, I am interested in doing this with you.

I have the funds at the time but I just need to know, is Precise 2 a faster way of doing CLL and is there a risk of knee problems still?

I want to know how long this would take from beginning to end so that I can walk relatively normal through the airport to fly to  Canada.

Is it easier to get visas for medical reasons if I'm Canadian.

Would I be able to stay in the guest house for the consolidation phase as well?

Thanks for your time, I am very impressed by you regularly answering everyone's questions.

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Quote from: kian222 on January 21, 2016, 03:05:01 AMDr Birkholtz, I am interested in doing this with you.

I have the funds at the time but I just need to know, is Precise 2 a faster way of doing CLL and is there a risk of knee problems still?

I want to know how long this would take from beginning to end so that I can walk relatively normal through the airport to fly to  Canada.

Is it easier to get visas for medical reasons if I'm Canadian.

Would I be able to stay in the guest house for the consolidation phase as well?

Thanks for your time, I am very impressed by you regularly answering everyone's questions.

The Precice also has the potential to cause knee pain. Healing times will be similar. The big advantage of Precice lies in eliminating the need for external fixation.

Walking unaided after LON may take somewhere between 4 and 6 months after surgery.

A general visitors visa is valid for 90 days. It can usually be extended upon request with medical reports.

Yes accommodation is around 10K zar per month. Breakfast and dinner can be provided at around 170zar(10usd) per day.

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Hi Dr Birkholtz, I've had a browse through the thread but I couldn't see anything, so apologies if I'm asking repeated questions! Also apologies if this should be in the general question thread, but I decided on here as these are specifically towards your practice as I'm 70% certain if I do decide this is right for me, I would like it to be with you - despite a fear of flying!

So I arrive in South Africa and have the operation on my femurs with Precise installed.

- Is 6cm the maximum you would be willing to do for this, and on average what would be the time taken to lengthen 6cm?

- At what stage would it be possible to weight-bear (presuming under 140lbs) after the operation, what level of functionality would be expected during lengthening, and would pre operation fitness levels have any impact on this?

- After lengthening, presuming there are no complications, what would the best and worst cases be for the recovery period to take in order to be able to:
a. walk unaided?
b. return to fairly sedentary work?
c. partake in strenuous activity, e.g. long distance running, contact sports, weight lifting etc.

- If the Precise device was to fail for any reason, what would the protocol be?

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