Patient Testimonials

I had refused to seriously consider taking any action for my knee. Dr. Kruse was the first doctor that I felt cared about my care and my future. He gave me hope for the first time in years that I can have my life back!

I’ve had Dr. Anseth replace my left knee and I am happy with it. I am now scheduled to have my right one replaced. He did an awesome job with the left knee replacement and I expect that same level of care with my next replacement. I feel blessed to have one of the best surgeons the Midwest.

After 3 years of worsening hip pain, I finally decided to visit TCO. I saw Dr. Sanders and he was very helpful. He explained my condition to me and what I could expect for the future. It took me awhile to finally accept that I needed surgery and, after a COVID delay, my left hip was replaced in June 2020. Dr. Sanders did a great job, not only with the surgery, but helping me understand the process. I was walking hours after surgery and my pain was gone! I used a walker for about 8 days and then walked on my own. Within 3 weeks I was walking for 30 minutes every day and worked my way up to 1 hour (3 miles) by 2 months post op. I am so pleased with my recovery! I highly recommend Dr. Sanders and also encourage everyone to follow his directions and do the exercises!

After two failed attempts to fix my thumb, I feel that Dr. Bakker actually listened to me. I truthfully didn’t care what he did because I had researched his qualifications and I felt so comfortable with his decisions, I just wanted to be out of pain and not deal with this left thumb pain anymore! He did exactly what needed to be done. I knew right out of surgery what he did worked because that pain in the pad of my thumb was gone! I’m happy, excited to move forward in my activities (as therapy allows) and stay out of pain!

Also, the staff is so friendly! They call out ‘hello’ when I walk in or ‘thanks, bye now’ when I leave! I love it! I am somebody at TCO!

I highly recommend Dr. Hess. He was my physician for rotator cuff repair. Dr. Hess was professional, as well as very personable. Prior to surgery he explained the procedure in detail and told me expected out comes. His staff offered great follow up support. Thanks to his wonderful work, I am back enjoying golf with no pain.

Dr. O’Keefe did such a great job on my operation. I am very satisfied with his work. I appreciate that he did such great work since it makes my life a lot easier now. I’m so glad I had him as my doctor. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

I am a very active person who had been living for several years with a bad shoulder after a fly-fishing accident. I was hoping the shoulder could heal on its own, but finally realized that it wouldn’t, and got an MRI. I was frustrated at how my shoulder joint would give out, cause pain, and I was becoming increasingly worried about how it would become an even bigger problem as I aged.  The MRI showed a near complete tear of my subscapularis tendon and partial tear of my supraspinatus tendon. I took the MRI to Dr. Wulf at TCO and two other highly regarded and experienced Twin Cities shoulder surgeons at prominent clinics.

The two other surgeons looked at the MRI and told me there was nothing they could do for me. They said the subscapularis muscle had atrophied too much to be surgically reattached. They both suggested PT and that at some point I may need either a complete shoulder replacement or surgery to graft some of my pectoral muscle in place of the subscapularis. Dr Wulf, on the other hand, was able to look at my MRI and see that while there was atrophy, there was still enough viable muscle to allow reattachment.  He told me that even if only half of the muscle remained, reattaching the tendons and getting the tissues back in place around the joint would provide the stability I needed to regain performance and keep the shoulder from failing.

Dr. Wulf’s prognosis was what I wanted to hear, but I was still apprehensive given the two other opinions.  I scheduled two additional appointments with Dr. Wulf where I inundated him with questions.  He patiently answered them all, never wavered, and this encouraged me to put my faith in his knowledge, experience and surgical skill.

And he was 100% correct. I could tell early on in my recovery that this was an excellent repair, and that belief has only grown.  After seven months, I am back playing tennis again.  I can serve and stretch for a volley without hurting my shoulder. When I go to the gym, I can do flies without my shoulder giving out.  I can throw a ball and a Frisbee normally. I can put a bike up on ceiling hooks in the garage. I can scoop hard ice cream with my right hand.

Dr. Wulf restored my shoulder. He was the only surgeon who had the insight and experience to see that reattachment surgery was a real possibility, rather than seeing only options of last resort. His surgical skill was evident in my quick, largely pain free recovery and my joint strength. I am grateful that because of his insight, experience, and skill, I am able to regain strength and performance and can continue doing the things I love.

I cannot fully express my gratitude to Dr. Kelly and his staff for their care of my shoulder injury. I sustained a proximal humerus fracture in a ski accident about one year ago. Dr. Kelly’s diligent approach to my surgery and recovery ensured a return to my pre-accident range. The staff, especially Kaici, treated me with the utmost care and concern at each and every appointment. The communication at every step was clear and concise. I would strongly recommend Dr. Kelly as a surgeon.

I was referred to Dr. Szalapski in November 2017 from a friend. I had total knee replacement in 2019 with very happy results. Dr. Szalapski’s assistant, Jessica, was a huge help. Love her! His team was great and very caring. I’m so happy I could walk again with no pain. I went back again to see him in September 2020 to get my right knee replaced. Tracy, on his team, was awesome and I’m glad that they did not do staples on the incision but glue instead. That healed much faster and looks much better than it would have with staples. Thank you Tracy! I am on my way to a great recovery. Once again, thanks to Dr Szalapski and his team. I also loved the Excel Program! That was the best place ever instead of being in a hospital! There was excellent care and awesome nurses with great, private rooms too!

Dr. Szalapski was brought to my attention by my regular physician. After an unfortunate encounter with an icy freeway in January 2020, I found myself in the ditch at 4:50am, on my way to work. My car was messed up, but I figured out later that my body was also. It started off as a nagging pain in my right hip after I hit black ice, drove into the ditch, and hit my hip on the center console at freeway speed. I had a clinic visit a few days later and after that, tried a cortisone shot, all to no avail. I continued working through the pain, which progressively got worse. Then came the Covid-19 lockdown. Clinics were closed for months for general visits. The pain got to the point where I could barely walk, let alone function at work.

Finally, I was able to see my regular doctor who referred me to Dr. Szalapski at Twin Cities Orthopedics. I was familiar with TCO, as I had a very successful right rotator cuff repair on my shoulder, which has held up GREAT since 2011 (thank you Dr. David Anderson). Now I’ve had a total right hip replacement done by Dr. Szalapski, and so far, I have to say, the quality of his surgical expertise, is remarkable! His bedside manner is impeccable, and he has a great sense of humor on top of it. I couldn’t be happier! Thank you Dr. Szalapski!