AP Photo Did we mention the nurses? One more reason to visit Siriraj University Hospital for medical care.

For many tourists, traveling to places like Mexico, India, Brazil or Thailand isn't about the exotic cuisine, warm weather, five star hotels or sandy beaches.

Those things are added bonuses, though, when you're recovering from breast augmentation or a knee replacement.

According to the National Coalition on Health Care, more than 500,000 Americans went overseas in search of a super deal on medical procedures in 2005, a number that is likely to grow, considering the 47 million people who are without health insurance. Overseas, most of these procedures can be done at a tenth of what it costs in the U.S.

"These types of procedures are technologically advanced equivalent to the U.S.," says Dr. Jeff Robertson, chief medical officer for Regence, a nonprofit health insurer in the Pacific Northwest region. "But they lend themselves to medical travel because they are entirely elective. You can choose when to have them done. It's not like you wake up in the morning and choose to have a hip replacement."

For the most part, people seek treatment overseas for elective procedures or because they lack insurance. However, some U.S. insurance companies have begun to reimburse American policyholders for overseas care because it's cheaper -- but only for essential procedures.

So where do you go for what? How much do you save? And what's different over there?

MEXICO: Drink margaritas, work on your Spanish and get those teeth fixed -- Mexico has become a popular destination for Americans with no dental benefits (at most 43 percent, according to a 2007 report from the National Association of Dental Plans/Delta Dental Plans Association).

Dentists luring patients across the border with deep discounts on crowns, root canals, and dentures, among other procedures. For example, Rio Dental in Juarez, Mexico, charges $260 for a molar root canal, according to its Web site. The same root canal in the U.S. can run as much as $800.

The American Dental Association advises patients to stay stateside for dental care, touting U.S. dentists' education and high standards. But testimonials from some dental medical travelers are often positive.

"It is true that Mexico has a longstanding image problem in the U.S., some of it earned," says Jeff Schult, author of "Beauty from Afar." "There are less-than-stellar facilities, poor or infrequent regulation and inspections. But it is becoming more the exception than the rule."

BRAZIL: Recover from that face lift in a hotel along a pristine beach. Known as the nip/tuck capital of the world, Brazil is gaining popularity for cosmetic procedures, ranging from butt augmentations to tummy tucks. (In smaller numbers, people go there for dental work, weight loss surgery, LASIK and orthopedic procedures).

In the U.S., a facelift costs an average of $6,500, according to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. The same procedure costs about $1,900 in Brazil.

In terms of care, the U.S. State Department's Consular Information Sheet on Brazil cautions: "While Brazil has many plastic surgery facilities that are on par with those found in the United States, two U.S. citizens died and one was left in vegetative state from complications following plastic surgery in 2005."

Brazil, however, has the most hospitals of any country outside the U.S. that are fully accredited by the Joint Commission International, which evaluates and accredits health care organizations and programs in the U.S.

INDIA: Watch a Bollywood movie, shop for silk and undergo a liver transplant. The Apollo Hospitals Group, which bills itself as "the health care powerhouse you can trust with your life" has 41 hospitals, including several in India that are JCI-accredited and cater to the western medical traveler, says Robertson.

Besides transplants, foreigners come to India for heart surgeries, orthopedic procedures, weight loss surgery, LASIK, cancer treatments and dental work.

In the U.S., a liver transplant costs about $250,000 (not including follow up care), according to the National Foundation for Transplants. In India, it can cost $30,000, according to liverindia.com.

The U.S. Department of State advises sticking to hospitals in population centers; adequate to excellent medical care is "usually very limited or unavailable in rural areas."

Robertson described Apollo Hospitals as having "luxurious marble hallways, granite counters and the latest technologically advanced operating rooms. The surgeons and doctors are all western trained; most speak flawless English. These are not what one thinks of as a Third World hospital."

THAILAND: Visit the temples, the markets and dine on authentic Thai cuisine before having a sex change. Thailand is a hot spot for gender reassignment surgery -- operations so popular they are advertised in newspaper classifieds, according to an Associated Press story from 2006.

The AP reported that one clinic offered sex change surgery for a mere $1,625. In the U.S., sex change surgery can cost as much as $40,000.

Thailand has more than 400 private hospitals, including Bumrungrad International Hospital, a JCI-accredited facility in Bangkok that serves more than 400,000 international patients a year. There are more than 900 doctors, 200 U.S. board certified, representing 55 specialties, including cosmetic surgery, LASIK, orthopedics, cardiac treatments, and women's health procedures.

Hospital stays are a bargain, according to Dr. Rome Jutabha, medical director for MEDS Global Healthcare, which arranges medical travel to Thailand and follow up once patients are back in the U.S.

"A hospital stay in the U.S. would run about $1,000 a day," he says. "Over there, it's about $150 a day, and it would be comparable to walking into a five star hotel."

SINGAPORE: Singapore is billed as a premier destination for health care services -- including heart and orthopedic procedures, dental care, transplants -- even stem cell transplants.

In the U.S., an angioplasty can range from $57,000 to $83,000, according to Dr. Jason Yap, director of healthcare services for the Singapore Tourism Board. In Singapore, the cost is about $13,000.

The World Health Organization ranked Singapore's health care system the best in Asia in 2000 and the sixth best in the world (The U.S. was 36th), says Yap. All the major healthcare networks are JCI-accredited.

"We are looking for international patients so that we can look after our own people well," says Yap. "People do come to Singapore for knee replacements, but we are not interested in those kinds of cases. We are more interested in complex surgeries to make sure our doctors can maintain their skills."