Postoperative precautions 1. Postoperative bed rest: The surgical wound is only 8mm, therefore, bed rest is only to stop the bleeding, and you can move freely after two hours after surgery. 2. Recurrence period (recovery period or edema period): l The so-called: “postoperative reaction” will start to appear on the third day after surgery, which is manifested by the reappearance or even aggravation of preoperative symptoms, or new symptoms such as numbness, pain, soreness and weakness. The duration can be very short or very long, ranging from a few days to 3 months or even longer. About 30% of patients will have various symptoms in the “recurrent period” after surgery, which can be reduced or avoided by strictly following medical advice. The symptoms of the recurrent period are various, but generally they are low back pain, hip pain, numbness, swelling, or soreness at the incision site, etc. There are also a few symptoms on the opposite side, most of them appear or are obvious when standing or sitting, and most of them can be relieved by themselves. If the symptoms are not relieved by bed rest or continue to worsen progressively, the MRI should be reviewed to see if endplate inflammation is present, and the treatment plan should be changed and the treatment period will be extended. The “recurrent period” is not a period of relapse or ineffective treatment, but a period of self-recovery. The purpose of medication and rehabilitation within 3 months after surgery is to reduce or shorten the recurrent period, however, there is no way to exempt all patients from the “recurrent period”. 3. lag in imaging changes: The symptoms improve first after surgery, and then the imaging changes such as MRI and CT are seen, which is called “lag in imaging changes”. The imaging changes are usually after six months, and the factors that influence this are mainly age, length of medical history, whether or not the patient has received other excessive treatment, the degree of prominence, and the severity of the disease. Contraindications: l No alcohol, no overwork, and preferably no “hairy foods” such as mutton and seafood for 3 months after surgery. l Do not engage in long-term bending or prolonged squatting work or activities, such as long meetings, weed pulling, etc., within six months. l Do not lie in bed for a long time after surgery, preferably for no more than 10 hours. Otherwise, the symptoms will be relieved slowly. l Do not play computer games for a long time, surf the Internet or play cards for a long time within 6 months. 5. Suggestions: l Keep in touch with the bedside doctor for 3 months after surgery in order to guide the medication and rehabilitation exercises. l Medication: neurotrophic, blood-strengthening, anti-inflammatory and analgesic drugs are recommended for 3 months after surgery to facilitate the smooth passage of the “recurrent period”. Follow up: After the surgery, the patient should come back for follow-up at the third month, six months and one year. The follow-up visits include simple questions, physical examination, imaging, etc. The content of each visit varies and is tailored to each patient’s situation. l Each patient should return one year after surgery with preoperative imaging data for follow-up MRI, CT, etc. l A follow-up form should be filled out again one year after the surgery for a review and assessment of the efficacy. l Absolutely no absolute bed rest without any exercise after surgery, otherwise there will be adverse consequences l Post-operative rehabilitation should be carried out gradually and in accordance with medical advice, and if conditions permit, it should be transferred to the rehabilitation department. l Rehabilitation exercises can also be done by oneself, such as Taijiquan, Ba Duan Jin and various gymnastics, etc. can be used as exercise programs. If the recurrence is caused by various factors such as poor rehabilitation and improper exertion, you can undergo minimally invasive surgery again because minimally invasive surgery, unlike open surgery, leaves a lot of scars that can hinder or make the second surgery more difficult. The second minimally invasive surgery will be as smooth as the first minimally invasive surgery.