How many medical tourists exist?

There has always been speculation about the true number of medical tourists traveling in the United Kingdom for treatment abroad.

We've just completed the first ever desk doctor search providers and came up with some interesting data about medical tourism market. The treatment abroad Medical tourism Survey 2007 (http://www.treatmentabroad.net/), reveals that more than 50000 people traveled abroad for treatment in the past year and spent $ 161 million in medical tourism. The number of medical tourists increased 25% during the 12 months and will continue to grow over the next 6-12 months.

Dentistry is the most popular service with dental treatments as crowns, dental implants, bridges and veneers leading the way. Over 20000 Brits travel abroad to teeth, spending around £ 2500 each, with an estimated market value of over £ 50 million per year.

Cosmetic surgery is a close second with about 14500 patients traveling outside the United Kingdom. Breast augmentation, liposuction, Tummy tuck and lifting are popular choices. patients spend approximately £ 3500 each, creating an estimated market size of 50 million pounds.

The most common types of elective surgery for patients travelling abroad are hip replacement, knee replacement, removal surgery and laser eye cataracts, with about 10000 patients spend $ 37 million in 2007.