Objective To evaluate the clinical characteristics and risk factors of recurrent lumbar disc herniation (rLDH) after percutaneous endoscopic lumbar discectomy (PELD). Methods A total of 942 consecutive patients with lumbar disc herniation who underwent single-level PELD in our hospital from Jan. 2013 to Aug. 2019 were included. They were divided into rLDH group and non-rLDH group. Patient characteristics, radiographic parameters and surgical variables were compared between the 2 groups. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to determine the risk factors of recurrence after PELD. Results The prevalence of rLDH was 6.05% (57/942) in this study. There were significant differences in age, sex, body mass index (BMI), current smoking, duration of low back pain, occupational lifting, herniated disc type, facet joint degeneration, operation time and time to ambulation between the 2 groups (all P<0.05). Univariate logistic regression analysis showed that the incidence of rLDH after PELD might be related to age, sex, BMI, current smoking, occupational lifting, operation time, and time to ambulation (all P<0.05). Multivariate logistic analysis suggested that an older age (odds ratio[OR]=1.210, 95% confidence interval[CI] 1.145-1.279, P<0.001), the male sex (OR=0.396, 95% CI 0.174-0.889, P=0.027), a large BMI (OR=1.363, 95% CI 1.201-1.547, P<0.001), heavy work (OR=8.804, 95% CI 3.069-25.257, P=0.003) and early ambulation (OR=0.744, 95% CI 0.685-0.809, P<0.001) were risk factors for rLDH after PELD. Conclusion An older age, male sex, larger BMI, heavy work, and early ambulation are risk factors of rLDH after PELD. Great importance should be attached to these risk factors to prevent rLDH.