Clocking In After a Microdiscectomy: Who’s Back on the Job?

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When your surgical patients ask, “Doc, when can I go back to work?” you know you all silently perform a complex Bayesian ritual involving pain levels, patient motivation, job type, and whether the patient seems likely to spend the day lifting bricks or managing a spreadsheet.

Fortunately, a new study has delivered what you’ve all been craving: actual data — 52 weeks of it — on who returns to work after microdiscectomy, when they do it, and what factors help or hinder that return.