Objective To study the reasons of revision operation for lumbar spinal canal stenosis and the operative and post-operative procedures. Methods Twenty-one patients with lumbar spinal canal stenosis were recruited. All patients underwent primary decompression operation and several with internal fixation by posterior approach. Revision operations were performed because symptoms remained. The reason, effect and relative process of these operations were analyzed. Results The main reasons in our revision operative group included incomplete decompression, instablility of lumbar vertebrae, deflection of screws, postoperative recurrence of lumbar disc herniation and improper operative type. All patients were followed up for a period of 12-36 months (24.8 months on average) and reviewed regularly after operation. Before revision surgery, the lumbar JOA score was 11.28?2.67, but at final follow-up, the lumbar JOA score was 19.45?2.79. The improvement rate was (45.34?7.87) %. The sensation, muscle strength and function of lower limbs were satisfactory. Conclusions Good effect can be obtained through strict control of indications of operation, effective decompression and reasonable fixation.