Back Surgery Recovery Time

Back surgery can be a way of getting rid of any long-lasting back pain problem. Though back surgery is always used as the last resort, when all other options have failed. But it is known to have helped many people to get back to their normal lifestyles. Generally, people who have a vertebral fracture or a herniated disc are recommended to get a back surgery done. The people with a narrow spinal column and those suffering from slip disc can also benefit from back surgery. Back surgery can help to increase the stability in your spine and aims at increasing the size of the spinal canal as well as attempts to release the pressure on the nerves.

Before performing back surgery, your surgeon will ask you to fill up a form which will typically contain the details related to your past health history as well as your current medical condition. You should let your doctor know if you are suffering from any kind of allergy or diseases so that he can decide whether it would be safe to go ahead with the back surgery. Certain blood tests and x-rays may also be conducted before the surgery. In most of the cases, back surgery has shown positive results. However, there might be a few cases wherein the patients have experienced mild side effects of the procedure for some time. Given below is the information on recovery time for back surgery.

Recovering From Back Surgery

The back surgery healing time depends on the complications of the case and varies from person to person. If the back surgery involves making very large incisions on the back, then it may take a lot of time for getting healed completely. Be it a simple or a complex back surgery, undergoing physical therapy is very essential as it reduces the back surgery recovery time substantially. Many people suffer from pain, inflammation and muscle spasms post back surgery and these can be cured with the help of effective medicines in most of the cases. Your doctor will monitor whether the medications are helping your body to get back to the normal state. The back surgery recovery time can be several months in case the patient has undergone a conservative back surgery. The back surgery recovery time will be less if you follow the instructions of your doctor related to body movements and back exercises. Generally, very light exercises are suggested to the people who have recently undergone back surgery. You might be advised not to indulge in any heavy-duty physical activities such as running, playing sports, lifting heavy objects, etc. The reason for this is that by doing these activities, the process of healing can get affected and you might experience more pain than earlier.

After back surgery, you should not keep your body in one particular position for a very long time. Walking slowly can be a good exercise and can help you build your body strength. The back surgery recovery time under normal circumstances is believed to be around six to seven weeks. In some cases, the recovery from spine surgery can take around twelve weeks while most patients having undergone the lumbar spine surgery return to their daily jobs after five weeks. The back surgery recovery time in the case of cervical spine surgery is also the same as the lumbar back surgery.

Though back surgery recovery time is different for people undergoing it, the success ratio of this surgery is considered to be high in the medical circles.