Early Postoperative Home Exercise Program After Cervical Spine Surgery

The overall objective of this two-group randomized controlled trial is to gather preliminary evidence on the efficacy and safety of early postoperative exercise for improving disability, pain, and general physical health in patients after anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) surgery. Our central hypothesis is that an early home exercise program (HEP) performed within the first six weeks after surgery will decrease disability and pain and improve general health, through increases in physical activity and self-efficacy and reductions in fear of movement. The results of our randomized trial will advance research on postoperative management for patients with cervical spine surgery and provide evidence in line with a value-based healthcare approach for optimizing outcomes.