Some patients say former Duluth doctor, Konasiewicz, helped them

In a statement to the News Tribune about the care Dr. Stefan Konasiewicz provided to his patients, St. Luke’s hospital said: “Dr. Konasiewicz performed thousands of difficult and life-saving surgeries on thousands of patients throughout our region. Many people are alive and walking today because of the outstanding care and skill of Dr. Konasiewicz.”

Among those patients is former News Tribune sports editor Irv Mossberger, who praised Konasiewicz for identifying a blocked carotid artery and repairing it during a surgery in 2003. Since then, the 67-year-old said he has had no complications from the surgery.

“He saved my life,” Mossberger said.

Another patient, 50-year-old Anita Ettinger of Duluth, had two surgeries by Konasiewicz in 2001 and 2002 to repair ruptured cervical discs. She said that two weeks after the second surgery she didn’t have any pain and she hasn’t had any significant back pain since.

“I’m walking because of that man,” Ettinger said.

One success story of Konasiewicz’s was featured in a Discovery Health Channel show.

In August 2005, Meredith Estes was beginning her freshman year at the University of Minnesota Duluth when she began to get cold-like symptoms. A few days later, her symptoms had escalated to chills, dizziness and confusion. She began throwing up and had difficulty hearing. A few days later, her memory began to fail. After being admitted to St. Luke’s, she would eventually be diagnosed with Lemierre’s syndrome, which caused an abscess to grow in her brain.

Konasiewicz performed two surgeries on Estes, including a craniotomy to relieve the swelling and remove the brain abscess, which required removing a piece of her skull.

Estes graduated from UMD with a degree in accounting in 2010 and is now working for the Minnesota Department of Revenue. She’s also studying to become a certified public accountant.

Her mother, Kristie Estes, credits Konasiewicz for saving her daughter’s life.

“I don’t know if she would be alive today,” she said. “Her condition was worsening pretty rapidly.”

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