When can women return to work and exercise after uterine artery embolization? Dr. Bruce McLucas: One of the real benefits of uterine artery embolization is how quickly a woman can return to work. I would say that the typical thumbnail of my patients is a professional woman, who is active in her work or a busy housewife, who is looking after two or three children and doesn’t want to be down for the six weeks after surgery. In embolization, you’ll be able to function at 80% to 90% of your capacity within five days after the procedure. Exercise, probably a week before you can do a bouncing type exercise. We encourage our patients to get up and walk and do non-contact exercise right after the procedure.