Dr Dream | Dr Sirada Udompakdeepong
Specialist physician in rehabilitation medicine

The role of technology and treatment without surgery

Dr Sirada Udompakdeepong, or Dr Dream, a rehabilitation medicine physician, has given the view that the science of rehabilitation not only cares for the body, but also includes the mind, with the goal of caring for patients in a holistic way.

Caring for body and mind in a holistic way

Dr Dream says that the term "rehabilitation medicine" covers several aspects, from caring for the muscles, the bones, the joints, and the tendons, through to the group of symptoms of the brain, such as cerebrovascular disease, and what is important is care of the mind. A good rehabilitation medicine physician must therefore be someone who listens to the patient's ailments of the mind as well.

The motivation for choosing to study this field arose from seeing methods of treatment that are wonderful, such as Western needling (Dry Needling), which uses small needles to go in and put right the patient's pain in a short time, making the doctor feel fond of a method of treatment that shows a result so quickly.

Besides this, of particular interest is the strong point of the technique of Ultrasound Guided Injection, or the technique of injecting medicine that uses high-frequency sound waves from the ultrasound machine (Ultrasound) in order to create an image inside the body in real time, so that the doctor sees the position to be injected with high precision.

▶︎ Seeing the needle as it goes in: making it certain that it reaches the desired point precisely

▶︎ Seeing the structure (Structure): being able to choose to inject various substances, such as PRP (Platelet-Rich Plasma), in order to repair a tendon that has an injury or is partly torn (such as the Supraspinatus tendon), right on target

This technique is therefore extremely useful for patients who do not want surgery, particularly in the group with tendon injuries, or patients with a degenerated knee in the late stage who need an injection of artificial joint fluid in order to relieve the pain and increase the quality of life. And Dr Dream believes that in the next ten years these technologies will come to have an important role and be of great benefit to the nation, since at present Thailand has entered an ageing society (Aging Society), which makes rehabilitation medicine increasingly important in caring for and planning restoration, working as a team together with physiotherapists and occupational therapists.

Besides this, Dr Dream is also interested in the field of Sport Medicine, the care of athletes, which requires patience and is divided into 3 stages (Acute phase through to Return to Sport). Using the ultrasound machine in diagnosis from the first stage will help the doctor see the details of the injury of the tendon (Tear/Injury) clearly, so that the treatment can be passed on quickly. With equipment and technology that are ready, the restoration of athletes proceeds effectively and they return to playing sport as they intended.

The future of technology for the best treatment

Dr Dream tells of the experience of going to observe work in New Jersey, the United States, and finding that the technology of injecting medicine with ultrasound guidance abroad is very advanced, and that Thailand still lacks this part.

"Doctors in Thailand are rather good in our opinion already, but we still lack the part of technology. If our country had technology like theirs, we would be able to help patients more."

-Dr Dream

Dr Dream leaves a message for people of the modern age who live alongside technology (AI, mobile phones) and who usually meet with the problem of office syndrome, because of bending the head down and using incorrect postures, emphasising that she would like everyone to keep up exercises that stretch the muscles. But if the symptoms do not go away, or precise treatment is needed, you can come and consult a rehabilitation medicine physician at any time.