Effectiveness of early cervical functional exercise in patients after anterior cervical discectomy and fusion: A randomized controlled trial

To observe the effect of early cervical functional exercise (CFE) on clinical outcomes and safety of patients after anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF). Sixty patients who underwent ACDF from September 2019 to September 2020 were analyzed and randomly divided into two groups: the CFE group (27 cases) and the usual care (UC) group (33 cases). Then, all patients in the two groups received routine postoperative guidance care at the same time. Besides, the patients of the CFE group underwent a cervical functional exercise program after on the third day after ACDF. The evaluation was conducted preoperatively and at 1 week, 1 month and 6 months after surgery. The Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), Neck Disability Index (NDI) and Japanese Orthopaedic Association scores (JOA) were used to assess clinical outcomes and the safety was confirmed with routine postoperative radiological visits to ensure intervertebral stability. The CFE group reported lower neck pain scores on VAS at 1 month after surgery (P = 0.02) and higher postoperative scores by JOA at 1 month and 6 months, neck disability on NDI at 1 week, 1 month and 6 months after surgery (P