[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2024\/08\/pauls-hip-replacement-story\/#Article","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2024\/08\/pauls-hip-replacement-story\/","headline":"Paul\u2019s Story: How Hip Replacement Got Him Landscaping and Gardening Again","name":"Paul\u2019s Story: How Hip Replacement Got Him Landscaping and Gardening Again","description":"

Paul Rizzo had both hips replaced at UPMC Williamsport, four years apart, each with an anterior approach. Now the greenhouse owner lives and works pain free.<\/p>","datePublished":"2024-08-19","dateModified":"2025-07-15","author":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.upmc.com\/services\/orthopaedics-regions","name":"UPMC Orthopaedic Care","url":"https:\/\/www.upmc.com\/services\/orthopaedics-regions","sameAs":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/orthopaedic-surgery\/","parentOrganization":"UPMC"},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"UPMC HealthBeat","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/UPMC-HealthBeat-Logo.png","url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/UPMC-HealthBeat-Logo.png","width":600,"height":60}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/GettyImages-688966642.jpg","url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/07\/GettyImages-688966642.jpg","height":869,"width":1999},"url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2024\/08\/pauls-hip-replacement-story\/","about":["Health Topics A-Z","Orthopaedics"],"wordCount":760,"keywords":["North Central Pa Ortho"],"articleBody":"When Paul Rizzo\u2019s left hip started hurting at the end of 2022, he knew he’d likely need a hip replacement.He\u2019d gone through the same thing with his other hip several years before. \u201cWith my right hip, it got to the point that I could barely move,\u201d says Paul, who recently turned 65.He\u2019d tried everything to manage the pain, including physical therapy and injections. \u201cIt helped, but the pain always came back.\u201dPaul had felt scared about seeking a hip replacement back then. As the owner of Rizzo\u2019s Greenhouse & Flower Shop in Lock Haven, Paul worried about how joint replacement surgery would impact his ability to do his job.Could he still push wheelbarrows and get down on his knees to plant? Could he climb ladders to make repairs to the greenhouses? And how much time would he need to take off after surgery?Former UPMC orthopaedic surgeon Mark Rackish, MD, walked Paul through the procedure, letting him know what to expect. In September 2019, after years of pain, Paul had hip replacement surgery for his right hip at UPMC Williamsport.‘The best decision I ever made’\u201cI woke up from the operation, and within a few hours, they had me walking up and down the hall,\u201d Paul remembers of that first hip replacement. Though his incision was sore, the pain that had become etched in his brain for so long was gone.\u201cI knew right away that it was the best decision I ever made,\u201d he says. \u201cI only wished I had made it sooner.\u201dWhich is why he decided not to put off getting the second hip replaced. \u201cI realized that I didn\u2019t need to go through that again,\u201d he says. When the left hip started hurting, he reached back out to UPMC Orthopaedic Care.It turned out that Dr. Rackish had since retired from UPMC, so after looking at his options, Paul made an appointment with Kyle Hubler, DO, in the spring of 2023. He just had a good feeling about the surgeon, he says.His instincts were correct: Dr. Hubler was just as soft-spoken and caring as he had hoped.‘Now I have the freedom to work at what I love to do’The physical nature of Paul\u2019s work can be quite demanding on the body, being on his feet every day. It\u2019s work that he loves, but it isn\u2019t easy on his joints.After meeting with Dr. Hubler, he confirmed that Paul could greatly benefit from a hip replacement.Paul\u2019s second hip replacement surgery went just as smoothly as the first. As he did after the first surgery, he spent the night in the hospital.His recovery followed a similar path to the previous surgery. He used a walker for the first few days, mostly to steady himself. Then he used a cane for about a week.After that, he could stand and walk on his own. \u201cA few days after surgery, I was able to come over and do the flower arranging,\u201d Paul says. A few days after that, he says, he could water the flowers and wait on customers.\u201cIt wasn\u2019t long before I was back to doing everything,\u201d he says. He was quickly pain-free, climbing ladders and hauling mulch. \u201cNow I have the freedom to work at what I love to do.\u201dHe can\u2019t say enough about the care he received at UPMC. He even had some of the same nurses the second time around, and they remembered him. Those personal touches mattered, he said.He agrees that the anterior approach UPMC surgeons offer made a huge difference.His Best Advice: Don\u2019t Wait So LongIf Paul could change anything, he’d go back and have the first hip replacement sooner. He spent so much time limping, dreading the pain that found him day after day.It made life \u2014 and his job \u2014 unnecessarily hard.\u201cKeeping the business running takes a lot of responsibility. And it\u2019s certainly easier to do without constant pain.\u201dPaul now can move with greater ease. Rizzo\u2019s does the flowers for the chapels at UPMC Williamsport and UPMC Williamsport Divine Providence Campus.\u201cI think about all the pain I went through the first time, and how I wouldn\u2019t have had to if I wasn\u2019t so worried,\u201d he says. A fear of surgery is natural but find a surgeon you click with and start the conversation, he says.\u201cThey can give you a quality of life that you maybe haven\u2019t had for several years.\u201d"},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"2024","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2024\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"08","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2024\/\/08\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Paul\u2019s Story: How Hip Replacement Got Him Landscaping and Gardening Again","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2024\/08\/pauls-hip-replacement-story\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]