Patient Testimonials

Dr. Dwivedi repaired my broken ankle. He was professional and caring. The surgery has allowed me to return to walking the world. He explained all the steps in the healing process and what to expect along the way.

Dr. Engasser has performed a couple of surgeries on me now. His warm personality and confidence put any concerns I had about my procedure at ease. He has certainly corrected my feet to the point where I’m leading a full life again. I trust him to give me the truth and perform the care to the highest degree possible.

5 stars for Dr. Engasser! He has outstanding bedside manner, which is not easy to find with surgeons! He takes his time, listens well, and creates a confidence boosting doctor/patient team, even when he has to refer me to other physicians as needed. I have had two unrelated foot and ankle surgeries with Dr. Engasser and have been very satisfied with his expertise and my recoveries. I highly recommend Dr. Engasser.

I am a 73 year-old, active female who loves to snow ski, hike, wake surf, dance, and walk. Two years ago, I had a skiing accident out west that resulted in a horrific ankle sprain, but much to the surprise of my orthopedic care givers, there was no blown out knee and no broken leg. Thank god for my strong bones. I wore a boot during healing, but the docs didn’t prescribe physical therapy (PT), explaining that “most people don’t do it anyhow.” Then last year I had another skiing accident, where I was bucked off a ski lift at a local Minnesota hill, resulting in a severe hip contusion, but again, no broken bones. This time, I was prescribed PT, and I asked that they include my ankle in the RX for my hip. The first thing that saved me was meeting Beth Pesta, DPT. She and her team helped me recover from my hip injury and helped strengthen my ankle. The workouts were great at the clinic, and they gave me a detailed program for at home. As I completed PT, Beth recommended trainer Laurey Heinrich, CPT. I signed up and began training with Laurey last June. I was afraid that when she saw me, all that she would see was an overweight grey-haired old grandma, but it wasn’t long before she realized the activities I wanted to continue to do for years to come, and she started pushing me to gain strength. I have seen Laurey twice a week since June, and the results are showing! She has worked my entire body including flexibility and balance, and has made me stronger all over. In early August, I finally attempted to wake surf. I was unsure that I’d be able to get up, but I POPPED out of the water and enjoyed several great rides before the season was over. I continued to train to hike, starting with a mile, but eventually going for longer and longer hikes. And then ski season loomed. I had no interest in skiing until the ground was at least covered, and man made snow isn’t the best, but when I did start, I skied with more strength and vigor than I had even before my injuries. I was strong. I was more flexible than I had been, and my joints didn’t hurt. This PT and particularly the strength training has given me more years of being active, just how I’d always planned and hoped to age.

I was unable to walk without pain for many years due to the pain in my foot. Dr. Scallon performed the fusion surgery, eliminating pain and allowing me to resume hiking, a favorite past time of mine. Three weeks after surgery, I was able to hike various trails over in Zion National Park (wearing a boot), each hike being over two miles in length and 200+ feet in elevation change. It was night and day from the previous five years where I was extremely limited in my mobility. Dr. Scallon was very attentive to all of my concerns both pre- and post-surgery. I would highly recommend Dr. Scallon for any issue involving your feet or ankles!

Dr. Engasser and his team are the best! Before my ankle replacement I could hardly walk or sleep at night due to the pain. Now I am pain free and doing the thing I like to do most, walking!

Dr. Vargas was excellent!

I went to urgent care at TCO Vadnais Heights because I slipped and fell down my stairs. Dr. Vargas was on-site for clinic that day, and he was able to squeeze me into his schedule.

He was direct and kind, and he also communicated the urgency to resolve the physical trauma quickly. He was able to schedule foot and ankle surgery for me in two days with him. I’ve found out subsequent to this that for many people, it can take weeks to get in for surgery!

Although I was nervous at how all of this was unfolding so quickly (Wednesday urgent care, and Friday surgery), it was the best decision I made for my health to get the surgery. He was able to answer my questions, stay connected with me prior to surgery, and was attentive. My healing and recovery are going really well, and it’s been less than one week since my surgery.

If you want someone who “tells it like it is,” gives you solid, fact-based advice, cares for his patients, and is an expert in his field, then Dr. Vargas is your surgeon. I’ll be recommending him to my family and friends, should they need a podiatrist surgeon.

I saw Dr. Hofkens on June 1, 2023, for heel pain that was only increasing in severity. He diagnosed it as Baxter’s Nerve Entrapment. After various therapies were not helpful, Dr. Hofkens connected me with Dr. Den Hartog to discuss surgery. He confirmed your diagnosis, and I had surgery on October 31, 2023. It has now been 16 weeks since the surgery and my heel pain has (especially recently) been improving, and it is now probably about 85% normal. Took a long time for the nerve to calm down! While there is still some discomfort, I am again now able to walk and hike without any significant flare-up of pain. So this note is to express my gratitude for Dr. Hofken’s quick and quite careful diagnosis, and moving me through the TCO system to health.

The entire staff at TCO urgent care in Forest Lake, MN was phenomenal. Even though the PA, Rochelle, didn’t have a specialty with my toe surgery she was more than willing to review surgical notes, request x-rays, and write an email to Dr. McGarvey and his staff so they will have information for my follow up care. I’m so thankful for this location close to home. The staff at the front desk, X-ray, and PA were top notch! I hope more patients learn of this location.

I just wanted to take a moment to recognize my surgeon, Dr. Engasser. I am 59 years old and just received a total ankle replacement from Dr. Engasser at TCO. The care and consideration Dr. Engasser and his staff provided to me has been fantastic, both prior to surgery and after. The ultimate decision to have ankle replacement was thoughtfully laid out by him over the course of a year. Nothing was rushed, all options were considered, and a final agreement on treatment was decided. I am 3 months post-op I am walking under my own power and getting stronger each day. I can say without hesitation that meeting with Dr. Engasser was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. I would highly recommend him for anyone with ankle/foot concerns!