Hospital Horror: 'IVF hospitals have a very low success rate'

'IVF hospitals have very low success rates and provide very expensive treatments without having any knowledge about the real problem,' says Rediff.com reader Tapasya Karthickeyan

Photograph: Jackson Latka/Creative Commons

I have been taking treatment for infertility at two hospitals in Bangalore.

The first one made me undergo the in-vitro fertilisation procedure thrice. It failed every time.

The other hospital also prescribed IVF without diagnosing the actual problem.

Finally a doctor in Chennai advised me to undergo endometrial biopsy. It cost less than Rs 5,000, compared to Rs 7 lakhs I had spent earlier. After this procedure I got pregnant naturally in the next cycle.

IVF hospitals have very low success rates and provide very expensive treatment without having any knowledge of the real problem (it would seem).

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'For joint-pain problem my brother was given cancer medicine'

Dr Arun Mehta who holds a diplomate from the American Board Of Internal Medicine, shares his brother's Hospital Horror Story

I read the tragedy that Mrs B M Gupta suffered in 2013.

I share a similar experience my elder brother went through.

My brother, 68, is a diabetic and has bad knee problem. He followed the recommendation/advice of a friend who suggested a hospital in Mumbai.

He went to the hospital's out patient department January 2010. From the OPD he was sent to another doctor for his knee problem. My belief is that the first doctor was an orthopaedic doctor.

The second doctor diagnosed my brother and gave him some medicines. He had those medicines for almost an year. Not knowing much about my brother's case, I saw him only in July 2010 when he was suffering from a swollen, painful knee. His blood count, to my surprise, was normal.

I went abroad till December that year. His condition deteriorated over time. He became extremely weak. A blood test done in December showed he had a very, very low blood count. It was then I found out that he had been given medication to treat cancer for his joint problem.

Had my brother even called me once and allowed me to talk to the doctor, this life threatening event could have been prevented.

My lessons for the readers are:

• Allopathic medicines do not cure or heal. They only suppress the healthy response of the body would normally warn and guide us.
• Allopathic medicines have relief value if used over the short term.
• Never self-medicate with antibiotics, painkillers and antacids.

Note: Image used only for representational purpose

Also Read:

Hospital Horror: The you-need-tests racket

N Pathak's Hospital Horror Story

Hospital Horror: From numb hands to quadriplegia 

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• Did you or your family undergo surgery and face a life-threatening situation because of a hospital's negligence?
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