Interventional Pain and Physical Medicine Clinic (IPPMC)

I took my daughter to IPPMC for physical therapy and for a sports related injury. IPPMC was professional and the facility is absolutely beautiful. They offer every aspect needed for injury...state of the art gym, therapeutic pool, hot tub, MRI lab, and the staff from Dr. Kowalkowski to the staff who welcomes you to IPPMC was great! We have been to many other clinics in town who claim to offer pain management or physical therapy only to find out they only offer injections or give your child a piece of paper and a large rubber band and tell them to go home and do these exercises. That's not physical therapy. I would highly recommend IPPMC and would say go there for yourself to experience it, that way you don't rely on reviews from people you never met. You'll leave feeling great about experiencing it for yourself. more

I went to Dr. K for my neck pain. I had done a lot of yard work this fall and my fingers were getting tingly and numb doing my normal activities. I have a bulging disc in my neck and I know that I over did things. Dr. K examined me and ordered a cervical epidural steroid injection. I have had wonderful results. I do not have neck pain or the tingly pain in my fingers and hands when I wash the dishes and do chores around the house. I am an active person that takes care of myself and I do not want pain medications. I went and had one injection and my neck feels great. I have read the other reviews and I do not feel like Dr. K didn't care. In fact, I felt that he knew exactly what needed to be treated. I do like Dr. K's personality. He appears to enjoy what he does and keeps the conversation light hearted. more

I've been seeing Dr. K for approx. a year, he's very concerned and does all he can to ensure that the best care is being offered to get to the root of my pain. I've had medical and specialist in neurology, tell me I'm just going to have to learn to live with it! Its bursitis or arthritis!! After the care from Dr. K, he is going to install an electric stimulator, to alleviate some of the pain I live with constantly, I'm looking forward to getting the pain under control. more

I read some of the bad reviews and being a patient of IPPMC I thought it would be better to put my opinion towards IPPMC and Dr. K. I have been treated with dignity and honor. Dr. K was the person who has treated me and made my life a lot better. He knows his stuff. I was recommended by colleague to visit Dr. K. After his strong recommendation, I came to IPPMC to treatment. After consulting with Dr. K, my whole life has changed a lot. I don't have to depend on my family members for daily activities. In the medical business, it is tough to make everybody satisfied. During my visit, I used to talk with other patients with different pain problems and they only praised Dr. K for his excellent treatment and behavior. Even the staffs are very helpful. IPPMC is a great facility. I would definitely recommend all patients in pain to visit Dr. K and feel the change. more

I was in pain for 15 years. I have gone to different doctors and told there was nothing wrong or anything they could do. I was taking up to 16 Vicodin a day to cover my pain and it was not helping. I came to IPPMC. Since I have been here I have been much pain free.I have been able to do things that I have not done that in five years. I would recommend anyone to come here. more

I was in pain for 15 years. I have gone to different doctors and told there was nothing wrong or anything they could do. I was taking up to 16 Vicodin a day to cover my pain and it was not helping. I came to IPPMC. Since I have been here I have been much pain free.I have been able to do things that I have not done that in five years. I would recommend anyone to come here. more

I was referred to IPPMC by my physician and I can't thank her enough for it. I had a lot of neck and knee pain but after my visit with Dr. Thomas, I am feeling a lot better. I am glad to be free of pain. The staffs were amazing. Highly recommend! more

The team at Interventional Pain and Physical Medicine Clinic are very professional and well-coordinated. At the same time, they are very helpful and take good care of their patients. They go above and beyond to ensure the treatment of patients is going well. I used to work in bakery manufacturing company and due to severe labor work my body started having all the pain problems especially my back problem. I was pain patient for a decade and was unable to perform a lot of daily works. My life was miserable. Then, I met Dr. K through my physician referral. I have been treated here since then. I am glad that Dr. K has helped me lower my pain. I feel that my pain has been reducing day by day. My life changed completely again. Now, I can perform most of the daily works. Twice a week, I use their gym membership and the highly qualified Physical Therapists help me on that. I read some negative reviews about Dr. K and his clinic. Being a pain doctor is very difficult and demanding. People look for instant results and it is very tempting for Dr. K to make all of his chronic pain patients happy. He has all the credentials that make him a great doctor. I was a patient there and I was treated with a lot of respect and care. I did not notice any rude behavior. I don’t think that a doctor would behave badly only with certain patients and behave well with rest of the remaining. Overall, Dr. K has been life changing person for what he has done for me. I would highly recommend all the pain patients to visit his clinic and feel the change. more

I have had pain on my back for two years. I have visited many doctors and non of them were able to reduce my pain until I visited IPPMC. And now I don't have pain anymore after making 2 visits. Live has changed. I am so happy that I went to IPPMC. more

I would like to express my sincere gratitude for working me into your schedule. On that day I could not get out of bed without rolling onto my knees and working my way up. What you did for me was a miracle and I am back on my feet! I also appreciate your humble, straight-forward, human attitude. It makes for much easier communication. Thank you! more

I wanted to express my sincere gratitude for working me into your schedule last Friday the 14th. I could not even get out of bed that morning without rolling out onto my knee and working my way up. What you did for me was a miracle and I am back on my feet. I also appreciate your humble, straight forward and humane attitude. It makes for a much easier communication. Thank you again and God Bless. more

I have had back pain for over five years. I had a T11 compression fracture that was thought to be congenital, as well as a spinal syrinx. I had enough pain that I underwent a T10-11 posterior fusion. After my surgery I underwent 8 weeks of physical therapy, 3 times a week. I still had no relief. Previous to my surgery, I underwent five years of therapy and multiple doctor visits. After one visit at IPPMC with Dr. Kowalkowski I have never had so much pain relief. The staff is so helpful, understanding, and truly cares. more

I have been dealing with chronic TMJ for over ten years. I have seen multiple doctors and have received multiple treatments. My pain had progressed to a point of wanting to seek help at Mayo Clinic since I was unable to function normally. I had also begun developing back pain. Because of my pain I could not take walks like I used to and I had head symptoms that were affecting my daily function because of my jaw pain. Dr. Kowalkowski at IPPMC was my last stop before heading to Mayo Clinic. After just one month at IPPMC I have 80-90% improvement in my pain symptoms. I have worked with IPPMC physical therapy and their lumbar MedX program, as well as having Dr. Kowalkowski performed interventional treatments to my jaw and back. IPPMC has been a very positive experience. more

I have had back pain for 28 years. For years I have sought help for my chronic lower back pain. I had seen a number of different doctors, as well as therapies, in which I received minimal relief. A friend of mine, who is a nurse, told me about IPPMC. I am very happy that I came because I have had a tremendous amount of relief. I am currently walking 2 miles per day in which I have not done that for three years. I will continue coming to IPPMC when I need help. more

I have had back and leg pain for 11-1/2 years. I have had a total of three spine surgeries, and there was no relief from the surgeries. I was seen at another pain clinic in the Twin Cities who instantly wanted to put a pain pump in me for my pain. They kept on increasing my medication dosing, to a point I felt drugged. It did not seem to work after a while. My family physician referred me to IPPMC. Dr. Kowalkoski was very thorough and spent quality time understanding my pain. Dr. Kowalkowski created a rehabilitation plan for me. Finnaly, after 11-1/2 years, I have relief and I am happy again. The future looks bright because of this place. At this time, I want to get rid of my pain pump, which really never worked, and it was not the answer. I have been to many therapies, and this is the first therapy that worked on me and I look forward to coming. more

Dear Dr. Kowalkowski, I wanted to sincerely thank you for helping to manage my pain the last year. I couldn’t begin to imagine the pain I would be in without your help. In the last year you did more to manage my pain then the Doctor I was with for the five years prior. You treated my whole body, not just one area. You even took care of my fingers. I wouldn’t even be able to type this letter without your management of my care.You might have even saved my life with the growth that was found on the MIR. You know what pain needs to be treated with arthritis and which pain needs more investigation. So again I would like to say that you for treating my arthritis. I would highly recommend you to others. Please use me as a reference I would be willing to speak to others about the dynamic care you have give me. more

I had an acute back pain. I went to urgent care, and my primary care doctor put me on an oral steroid, but I continued to have a significant pain, to the point that I could not walk. It was excruciating pain. I came to see Dr. Kowalkowski, who on evalution determined I had a disc herniation and treated me immediately. I can say that within two hours of receiving a fluroscopic-guided spinal injection my pain was 90% improved. I have continued to follow up with Dr. Kowalkowski, and I continue to be 95% pain free. Dr. Kowalkowski is continuing to monitor my progress, and I thank him for his expertise. By diagnosing and treating me right away, I was able to get back to a normal quality of life. I would say that the entire staff at IPPMC has gone out of their way to make the experience positive. more

After undergoing a bilateral vasectomy I developed chronic testicular pain that affected me with all my activities of daily living. I lost my job as a certified nurse assistant because of my severe pain. I was seen by three separate urologists who treated me with multiple medications including pain killer which left me mentally and physically incapacitated. Because of the severe pain I was to a point of asking my urologist to remove my testicles so I could return to work and participate with my family. Once moving back to Minnesota I attempted to be seen at the Mayo Clinic which they suggested pain management. After being evaluated and treated by Dr. Kowalkowski at IPPMC, I received cryotherapy for my pain and I am currently 80% improved and I have been weaned off my high dose opioids. Even though I am realistic of my pain symptoms, the future is looking bring again. more

I developed the worst word there is for pain in September of 2007. I was seen at a local emergency room, who sent me to an orthopedic spine surgeon. Eventually, I could not do anything because of my severe back pain, which I was diagnosed with a compression fracture. I was unable to get in and out of bed. I crawled on my hands and knees to get out of bed. I was placed on pain medications and then referred to Dr. Kowalkowski at IPPMC. Dr. Kowalkowski performed a vertebroplasty, which depleted my lower back pain. Dr. Kowalkowski completed my work-up and found additional fractures in my thoracic spine and completed his treatment. The people at IPPMC are fantastic. They got me completely rid of the pain and I have a smile on my face. If you're in trouble, go see Dr. K. more

Since I started coming to IPPMC I have gotten my life back! My mom has said that I am back to the “old” me, which has been about five years. I have received physical therapy with Allen, injections from Dr. Kowalkowski, as well as being placed on a Suboxone program. I am currently feeling 100% improved and the new facility is fantastic! more