Patient Testimonials

I chose to have my knee replacement surgery with Dr. Szalapski based on the recommendation from my daughter. Dr. Szalapski and his staff walked me through the procedure and explained what to expect for surgery and recovery. 3 months post-surgery and everything is going well and I am feeling better. I would highly recommend Dr. Szalapski and the staff at New Prague surgery department.

On February 13th, 2018 I had my first knee replacement. Then on December 7th, 2018 I had my second knee replacement by Dr. Szalapski. He is very professional at his job, answered any questions I had and he had a good sense of humor. I would highly recommend him to anybody who needs a knee replacement! Thanks Doc for the good work!!
Ron G.

I’m a soccer player and I first tore my ACL in August 2016. I had surgery and two weeks later had a second surgery due to a rare situation where the endpoint of my graft moved. I spent 6 months in PT with Deb Kostecki and Kelly Soukup. I returned to playing soccer in June 2017 and couldn’t be happier. I finished my club season by winning the Midwest regional championship and earning a trip to the national championships with my team. My high school season started again in August 2017 and my club season began in late October. I tore my ACL for a second time on Superbowl Sunday, Feb. 4, 2018. I also tore both of my meniscus at the same time. I had a 5 hour surgery on 2/21/18 where my ACL was reconstructed from my quad tendon, both meniscus were repaired and a cadaver tendon was placed along the side of my knee, like an internal splint. I started back in PT again a few days later with Kelly and Deb. I had so much scar tissue built up from my prior two surgeries that the nerves in my leg were affected and I couldn’t get my knee straight and had continual pain in my foot. My focus in PT was range of motion in my knee and recovery from the surgery. I struggled with both. In July 2018, I had the 4th surgery on my knee in 22 months. This time it was a soft tissue release and scar tissue was removed as well as the nerve in my leg being released from the scar tissue and internal stitches it had gotten stuck on. Immediately after the surgery, the pain in my foot was gone and my range of motion was improved. I’ve continued with PT since that point to work on range of motion and now strength. Since August 2017, I’ve had 4 surgeries on my left knee and been in PT for almost 2 years – 15 straight months with the last injury. While I’ve had to give up my dream of playing college and club soccer, my goal is to play one last season of high school soccer. My comeback story isn’t complete. I continue with PT once a week. I’m also participating in ACE Plus with Maggie Dewitz and training at Training HAUS to build strength in my leg. People think I’m crazy for wanting to play soccer again, but the entire team at TCO, my PT’s , Dr. Neil Johnson and the Training HAUS crew, including Kirk Olson and Scott Schriever, are helping me work for one last season of high school soccer so I can leave the game on my terms this time.

Our TCO comeback story is a family affair. TCO’s expert surgeons and caring and knowledgeable physical therapists helped three members of our active family through a difficult 2018-2019 orthopedic year.

In May 2018, after many injuries and pain from decades of activities: football, baseball, basketball, running, floor ball and mountain biking, Dr. Chris Coetzee surgically reconstructed dad, Paul’s ankle (age 58).

Also, in May 2018, daughter, Emma, age 24, tore her ACL playing for her club ultimate Frisbee team. Dr. Christie Heikes surgically repaired Emma’s left knee in June 2018. In January 2019, Emma hit a speed bump in her recovery when she returned to Dr. Heikes for a cyclops lesion in the same knee.

Not to be outdone, mom, Beth, age 56, had her ski and hockey season cut short with shoulder surgery at the end of February 2019 with Dr. Adam Bakker. (Dr. Andrea Saterbak also got Beth back into skiing and hockey after her third ACL surgery in 2016; Son, Joe, had hand surgery with a TCO doctor too.)

These injuries were challenging for our active family of four. Our quality time is centered around sports. Every day after supper, when the kids were younger, we would go in the backyard to play games. Most often we played 2v2 soccer or wiffle ball. When the kids grew older, most evenings were spent at an organized soccer, baseball, softball, floor ball, hockey, or downhill skiing event. We attend each other’s events and encourage each other to reach our athletic goals. Therefore, we were eager to start our comeback journey.

Our family’s comeback journey led us to TCO’s physical therapy group. There, Brooke Deshler’s positive and motivational spirit inspired Paul to work through a long period of significant pain and instability to where Paul recently walked nine miles on a beach in Florida and biked over two hours on a warm Minnesota spring day.

Physical therapist, Mike Slavics, has encouraged both Beth and Emma with his fully engaged spirit.

Beth is back to a normal schedule of biking, working and everyday tasks. Nicole Tezuka’s upbeat personality also encouraged Beth to improve her range of motion and shoulder strength and even shared an excellent protein power ball recipe!

Emma’s significant knee injury at times isolated her and took her away from her day to day social network of her team sports and friend’s activities. Mike Slavic understood that physical activity was a big part of Emma’s well-being and identity. Mike inspires mental toughness and encourages Emma to persevere, often reminding her she is still an athlete. Mike passionately and safely motivated Emma to greatly improve her strength and balance so that Emma is now ready for TCO’s ACE (return to sports) program. Soon, Emma will be able to return to club ultimate frisbee and rejoin her mother’s hockey team.

Our family is still on our comeback journey. We often do our physical therapy together or go on walks to stay active. We are gearing up for family hikes this summer.
We owe our Comeback Journey to TCO’s Drs. Coetzee, Saterbak, Heikes, Bakker and physical therapists Brooke Deshler, Mike Slavic’s and Nicole Tezuka.

In the summer of 2017 I tore my right ACL playing kickball. I had never experienced an injury in my life that required surgery. I was scared, in pain and not knowing what recovery would have in store for me. The staff at TCO was amazing, my surgery and physical therapy went great. I was back playing kickball and volleyball the following season and never felt better. Unfortunately, in January of 2019, I was preparing for an out of state ski trip at Afton Alps. I took a turn on my skis and down I went. I had torn my ACL in the left leg. I remember the pain and also the frustration of having to go through another surgery and another recovery. Again, TCO delivered a great surgery experience. I began the recovery process, feeling pretty defeated. My physical therapist, Daniel, made my recovery fun. While challenging me to begin the repair process, we were able to talk about our mutual love for Game of Thrones and also of course the Minnesota Vikings. Daniel made sure that I felt comfortable and always took the time to try new things and come up with new ways to get my muscles strong again! I sincerely hope that this is the last time I will need to use TCO for surgery and recovery, but I am happy to spread the word about their excellent service and my positive experiences I have had over the years. Thanks TCO!

This journey began in fifth grade when I dislocated my left knee during a basketball game. It started with just one dislocation and a little bit of pain. I thought it would eventually go away, but by the end of the sixth grade basketball season the pain and multiple dislocations became the norm for me. In the fall, my knee became extremely swollen and painful, to the point it affected my ability to play both volleyball and basketball. So, we decided to see Dr. Jeff Mair at Twin Cities Orthopedics. Dr. Mair ordered an MRI due to the swelling and mandatory time off from sports. The results came back that I had a crack on the back of my patella and the cartilage on the back of my knee cap was coming off because of all the dislocations. At this point, I was not ready to quit playing sports, so we agreed to try a patella stabilizing brace along with lots of icing and pain relievers. By December, the pain and swelling had gotten so bad that it was affecting my everyday life, along with my ability to excel at sports. Upon our next visit with Dr. Mair, he delivered the news that I was going to need surgery and unable to play basketball for a minimum of 12 weeks and will have to miss the softball season.

On January 31st, 2019, I underwent a left knee arthroscopy, chondroplasty of the lateral femoral trochlea, removal of multiple cartilaginous loose joint bodies, lateral retinacular release, excision lateral patellar bony ossicle, open medial patellar-femoral ligament repair, and patellar and lateral femoral trochlear antegrade drilling/microfracture/marrow stimulation. Following the surgery, I was put in a straight leg immobilizer for six weeks with no bending at all. Surgery went very well, before we knew it I was up walking and shooting hoops.

TWO WEEKS BEFORE my surgery I had participated in a Knight of Columbus Minnesota Council free throw contest. I won the event, which then allowed the winners to move on to the District competition. The District competition was TWO WEEKS AFTER my surgery. I did not want to participate because I didn’t know how to shoot without bending my leg and I was embarrassed on how it looked when I shot. My mom convinced me to go, and I ended up winning the event that would then send me to the regional competition. The regional competition was FOUR WEEKS AFTER my surgery, as it drew near I was feeling less and less confident because I knew my competition there was going to be the hardest yet. I shot and made 21 out of 25 free throws! That put me in first place, I won the regions and I was on my way to state. I shot the last two competitions with a straight leg immobilizer on. The state competition was held 8 WEEKS AFTER my initial surgery. By the time the State competition came I was walking again in a patella stabilizing brace and started therapy three times a week. I had two weeks of therapy in before the State competition arrived. Everyone believed in me and had no doubts that I could pull off the win. I had many doubts in myself because it had been so long since I had shot normally with just my patella stabilizing brace on. I got in the gym the morning of the competition as soon as I started shooting I could feel the excitement and the nerves of everyone around me. While we were warming up my nerves and doubts disappeared I knew that I could do anything because I had been working so hard to get to where I was at. I was the eleventh shooter out of twelve. The top girl so far had made 19 out of 25 which I knew I could beat, I got up to the line and BOOM! I was on fire I missed one here and there but I was counting in my head and I knew I had made eighteen but that’s when I lost track of how many I had shot. I shot another one to put me at nineteen the tying score of the girl before. It was my last shot, we tied. That meant we had to go to a tiebreaker out of five. She made 1 out of 5. I made 4 out of 5. I was the MINNESOTA STATE CHAMPION!

When I got back to therapy the next day we kept pushing to get my leg better. We did forty five minutes of work at therapy and then I went home and did more. The progress was going extremely fast and before we knew it, I was doing leg press, biking, and squats. With two more weeks of hard work, I started jumping and running. I am at the point now where I can practice and hopefully start playing the first weekend of May. I am almost 12 weeks out now and I can’t wait to get back on the court. I have had the greatest care team ever. This would not all of been possible without Dr. Mair and especially my physical therapist, Cathy Carrabre. Cathy pushed me every session to work hard, believe in myself, and be confident that I will be a better person and athlete at the end of this journey.

I went into my junior year of basketball unprepared, anxious, and quite honestly, a mess. However, I feel as though I have come so far and as many issues as my knee has caused, I wouldn’t take it back as it has made me the person I am today. During a fall league game of basketball, I was tripped and landed directly on my knee and when I tried to get up and run again I felt pops and like my lower leg was loose from my thigh. I went to the doctor that weekend and was told I had a bone bruise and a sprained hamstring. About two weeks later, I returned to basketball tryouts and was very cautious the first days and still felt unstable. I decided to put a brace on and if I didn’t feel better after practice the next day I would return to the doctor. I made it through the first half of practice, however, when we began to work on defensive drills, I shifted my weight onto my right leg and collapsed. I went to a TCO clinic and got an MRI shortly after. I was told I tore my PCL, had no idea what that was. But it wasn’t season ending so I was happy. I did some therapy and once I was able to return to basketball decided I wanted to make a major comeback for my senior year, so after practice every day I went to the gym and did cardio and was able to lose 50 pounds by the time the next season began. I went to every summer camp and event I was able to and began my senior season as a captain with many new skills, and I was actually able to run as required. Practice felt amazing and I was so ready to begin the season. We traveled to Chisago Lakes for our first game of the season, and seven minutes in I was guarding a girl on the three-point line, she drove on me slamming into my right thigh, forcing me to plant my foot sideways, then she wrapped her leg around me to continue moving forward which pulled my leg the opposite way. I felt the pop. I knew it was bad, but I got up and tried to run again to be sure and when I did it gave. My amazing teammates helped me to the locker room and I remember feeling my leg give out with every step. It hit me pretty hard over the weekend, and I got into a TCO as soon as I could and was told I likely dislocated my kneecap and it popped back in and that I possibly tore my MCL, then I got an MRI a few days later.

I came home from watching practice and my parents were sitting on the couch waiting for me. They just looked at me and said it’s bad. I thought they were joking with me but my dad said that along with the dislocation, I had torn my ACL, PCL and meniscus and would need surgery. I was devastated. But what killed me more was not being able to be there on the court for my team. Telling them I was done was horrible. One of my teammates broke down crying and it just destroyed me. I told them I loved them and that I was still a captain and would be there to support them no matter what. I was injured November 24th and had surgery December 5th, which I though was very fast. I had to stay home for a week because I did not react well with the drugs, but was able to leave the house to make it to our game that Saturday (my surgery was that Wednesday, three days earlier) which everyone told me was a stupid idea but I needed to see my team. They beat a team we have never been able to and it really picked me up. I worked hard at therapy with my amazing physical therapists Emily and Lee, and they helped me get ahead of schedule. I now wake up at 4:30 every morning before school to go to the gym to get back in shape and work my leg a few days a week. I am now five months out and feel great. I’m still cautious as I’m still in that vulnerable stage, but will be participating in the ACE rehabilitation program this June to get be back to full athletic ability. I’m doing everything I can to get to where I need to be physically, as I will be going to University of North Dakota this fall to pursue a degree in nursing and will be joining the Air Force ROTC program so I am able to use my skills as a nurse to serve others. Of course I wish I was able to play basketball and be in track and field this year, but I have grown so much closer to my teammates and have been able to overcome so many issues other than my knee. I had dealt with pretty extreme anxiety most of my life and was able to get that under control with the help of my doctors and my teammates. I was also able to get in the best shape of my life as my leg pushed me to be better, and although I lost some of my progress after surgery, I am working even harder to get to where I was and to exceed it. I am grateful for all of my experiences even though they were not what I had originally planned, as they have shaped who I am today and helped me strengthen many of my friendships and my own mindset which has made me a completely different person and will help me greatly in the future.

Once I decided to finally address the pain in my knee, I was getting injections. Decided to go all the way (tired of injection shots) and get my knee replaced. Dr. O’Keefe was open with me, informing me on what to expect. All went as he had told me it would and now the knee feels much better. Will be great to be able to do activities without pain.

After a bad experience with 2 knee replacements and years of pain from another physician, I went to Dr. Arntson with hopes he could help me. He has done a great job revising both knees and making them pain free. I would recommend to any patients to see Dr. Arntson!

I had my left total knee replacement, July 19, 2018 and it went really well. Therapy was really effective. I had my right total knee replacement on October 18, 2018 and it went really well too. Therapy was good too. Dr. Owen O’Neill and assistant Jessie are super helpful. I am now ready to have surgery on my spine, since my knees are doing so well. April 2019. I AM VERY PLEASED WITH TCO.