Getting injured or developing sudden pain during a trip can make it difficult to know where to seek medical care, especially when you are unfamiliar with Japan\u2019s healthcare system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you have a sprain, back pain, joint pain, a minor injury, or another musculoskeletal problem, you may be wondering whether to visit a clinic or hospital and which medical specialty to look for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This guide explains where to start, what type of clinic to look for, and what to check before seeking medical care in Japan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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For injuries and problems involving bones, joints, muscles, or tendons, an orthopedic clinic (Seikei Geka \/ \u6574\u5f62\u5916\u79d1)<\/strong> is often the appropriate place to start.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Orthopedic clinics in Japan commonly see patients with problems such as sprains, back or neck pain, joint pain, sports injuries, and suspected fractures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Depending on the injury, the clinic may perform an examination and arrange imaging such as an X-ray if needed. More serious injuries may require treatment at a hospital.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n When searching for care in Japan, you may also see facilities called seikotsuin (\u6574\u9aa8\u9662)<\/strong> or seitai (\u6574\u4f53)<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n These are different from an orthopedic medical clinic. If you have a new injury, significant pain, or think you may need a medical diagnosis, medication, or imaging, look for Seikei Geka (\u6574\u5f62\u5916\u79d1)<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n For most non-emergency injuries and musculoskeletal pain, an orthopedic clinic (Seikei Geka \/ \u6574\u5f62\u5916\u79d1)<\/strong> is usually a practical place to start.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you need more specialized examination, surgery, or hospital-based treatment, the clinic can refer you to an appropriate hospital.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For serious injuries that require immediate medical attention, seek emergency care rather than waiting for a regular orthopedic appointment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n **Large hospitals and university hospitals in Japan may require a referral letter for non-emergency outpatient care. Even when patients without a referral are accepted, additional fees or other restrictions may apply. For this reason, a local orthopedic clinic is often a practical first step for non-emergency injuries and pain. Getting injured or developing sudden pain during a trip can make it difficult to know where to seek medical care, especially when you are unfamiliar with Japan\u2019s healthcare system. If you have a sprain, back pain, joint pain, a minor injury, or another musculoskeletal problem, you may be wondering whether to visit a clinic or […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-68","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/japancarenavigator.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/68","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/japancarenavigator.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/japancarenavigator.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/japancarenavigator.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/japancarenavigator.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=68"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/japancarenavigator.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/68\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":70,"href":"https:\/\/japancarenavigator.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/68\/revisions\/70"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/japancarenavigator.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=68"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Orthopedics is different from \u201cSeikotsuin\u201d<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Clinic or hospital?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"