[求助]请教after和following的用法和区别

yangmbalin

OG11 12题
After gradual declesion down to about 39 hours in 1970, the workweek in the United States has steadily increased to the point that the average work now puts in  an estimated 164 extra hours of paid labor a year.
A. After gradual declesion down
B. Following a gradual declesion down
C. After gradual declining down
D. After gradually declining
F. Following gradually declining
answer
不太清楚after和following的用法和区别，请大家帮忙解答！初次发帖，谢谢各位

songxuebest

这两个都是介词，但刘苏说能用after不用following

allygmat7

after是介词，following是分词，分词后只能跟名词不能跟短语