Introduction: Lumbar Spine Fusion (LSF) is a common surgery for treating lumbar spine disorders like degenerative disc disease, spondylolisthesis, and spinal stenosis. Postoperative rehabilitation is necessary to optimize outcomes and reduce the risk of complications.
Purpose: This study aims to investigate the effect of a suggested early physical therapy program compared to standard care on pain and functional performance post-surgery.
Methods: This study is a controlled clinical trial including a two-group pretest-posttest design, all of the patients were undergoing posterolateral fusion of 1–3 levels in the early stage (4 to 6 weeks post-operative). Group A (Control) (n=21): Patients received standard care; Group B (Experimental) (n=21) Patients received a suggested early physical therapy protocol in addition to the standard care. Pain intensity was measured by the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and functional disability by Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) at week 4 to 6 post-surgical (pre-treatment) and at week 10 to 12 post-treatment.
Results: There were no significant differences in the VAS of group A (control) compared to that of group B (treatment) at the pre-treatment (p = 0.176) and at the post-treatment (p < 0.056). There were significant differences in functional status between groups in the post-treatment measures in favore of the treatment group (p < 0.001).
Conclusion: Adding a physical therapy program to the standard care protocol in the early stage post lumbar fusion surgery has favorable significant effect for 3 months post-surgery (a short term) on both the pain intensity and functional status in terms of mobility-related activities.