Prognosis of Lumbar disc Herniation

Once the surgery has healed the patient can start doing exercises to rehabilitate the treated area. A daily exercise routine consisting of 30-minute walks and flexibility exercises focused on the back and the legs can be a home-based routine. If necessary, the surgeon will refer the patient to a physiotherapist.

Regardless of the treatment indicated, there is a 5% probability that the disc herniation may reappear.

The results of the surgery are generally very good and it is rarely performed only for back pain as it specially improves the leg pain and not so much the back one.

Even though the majority of patients perceive an improvement the first weeks after the surgery, this improvement continues for several more months. Pain is the first symptom that improves, followed by an improvement in the overall strength of the leg and, later, the sensitivity improves. Some patients often mention that, despite perceiving an improvement in pain, they still have a numb area in the leg or foot.

Almost all patients slowly resume their daily activities in some weeks after surgery.