A total of 80 patients underwent posterior lumbar fusion were included, which were randomly divided into the observation group and the control group. Routine discharge education and telephone follow-up were carried out in the control group. Besides the routine education and telephone follow-up, the patients in the observation group were given continuous nursing care after discharge based on WeChat platform. The satisfaction rate, Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), Japanese Orthopaedic Association Scores (JOA) and JOA recovery rate were compared between the two groups.

Results The mean follow-up was 14.3 months. At the final follow-up, the satisfaction rate of the observation group was 92.5%, significantly higher than that of the control group (75.0%,P<0.05). Three days after the operation, there was no significant difference in VAS and JOA scores between the two groups (P>0.05). However, from 3 months to 1 year after the operation, the VAS and JOA scores of the observation group were significantly higher than those of the control group (P<0.05). One year after the operation, the recovery rate of JOA in the observation group was 85.0%, significantly higher than that of the control group (62.5%, P<0.05).

Conclusion Continuous nursing based on WeChat platform can improve the satisfaction rate of patients after posterior lumbar fusion, promote postoperative functional recovery and improve the clinical effectiveness.