For brothers, life was grim until hip replacements in Syosset

John and Robert Goldschmidt may not be joined at the hip but they came pretty close on May 19th.

The brothers underwent hip replacement surgery at Syosset Hospital on the same day with the same surgeon. They even had the same hip replaced — the left one.

Now they are recovering together at John Goldschmidt’s West Hempstead home, where they work several times a week with a physical therapist and cheer each other on daily.

Sometimes the cheering takes the form of brotherly teasing.

"I yell at him to take his medicine," said 50-year-old Robert Goldschmidt with a laugh.

Responded 54-year-old John with a smile: "And I yell at him to keep his foot straight."

Their natural camaraderie helped them in the hospital and will benefit both during rehabilitation, said Dr. Eugene Krauss, director of Orthopaedic Surgery at Syosset Hospital, who performed hip replacement surgery on the brothers.

"There’s a lot of kibitzing between the two of them," Krauss said, "but there’s a strong bond."

The surgeon estimates he has done more than 25,000 total hip and total knee replacements over his long career but said operating on two brothers in one day was a first.

Both John, a maintenance supervisor at the Long Island Development Disabilities State Operation Office, and Robert Goldschmidt, a manager of trade compliance at Peloton, had battled problems in their left hips for years as osteoarthritis wore away the cartilage protecting bones in the joint. Robert described the pain he suffered for almost 10 years as "excruciating" but admitted he avoided surgery out of fear and not wanting to be a burden on his family. He lives in a third-floor walk-up in Queens.

"Going up and down the stairs was torture," he said.

John Goldschmidt said that over the last two years his regular walks with his wife became more difficult.

"Everything started hurting," he said.

More than a year ago, he spent two weeks in North Shore University Hospital battling COVID-19.

It was during a follow up visit with his pulmonologist that he talked about getting the surgery done. It was temporarily delayed while they focused on getting John’s wife, who is battling an illness, immediate care.

"You’ve got to keep moving forward, you can’t just stop and hide," John said. "I’m doing this because I want to get back into my regular routine of doing everything."

Krauss said when he examined the brothers, he was surprised at the similarities of their injuries.

"The X-rays were like mirror images of each other," he said.

The hip joint is often compared to a ball and socket, with the top of the femur bone as the ball fitting into a socket in the pelvis. When the cartilage between them wears away, and the bones grind against each other, it can cause pain and the joint becomes irregular.

"If you think about your hip, it’s the largest joint in the body," Krauss said. "Any place that you position your leg, you’re moving your hip."

During surgery, the damaged parts of the joint are replaced with a prosthesis — a ball on top of the femur and a cup into the socket of the hip joint in the pelvis.

Just two hours after their surgeries, the brothers were up in the hospital, with staff helping them try out their new hips.

And by the next day, they had settled into John’s home, where he insisted Robert remain during the first weeks of their recovery.

Family members, including their sister, have pitched in too.

During a visit to John’s home last week, the brothers were upbeat as they navigated the house carefully with the help of canes. Both are looking forward to resuming their active lifestyles.

"One week after major surgery, I'm walking with a cane. The pain is completely gone," and elated Robert said. "I cannot wait to get back onto the soccer field with my children and take them to see the Islanders play liked I used to."

John said he is already eyeing several home improvement projects and hopes to go skiing next winter.

"They keep telling me to sit down, it's killing me," John said with a laugh. "I want to go out and do yard work, little things that you take for granted … but I know I can’t overdo it."

By Lisa L. Colangelo

lisa.colangelo@newsday.com@lisalcolangelo

Lisa joined Newsday as a staff writer in 2019. She previously worked at amNewYork, the New York Daily News and the Asbury Park Press covering politics, government and general assignment.