Arthroscopic-assisted uniportal spinal surgery with bone-anchored annular repair for far lateral lumbar disc herniation: A case report.
Hao Cao, Xin Zhang, Shili Chen et al.
✦ AI-curated · Sources linked
Case in brief
A 50-year-old woman had refractory lumbosacral and gluteal pain followed by right L3–L4-distribution radicular pain, limiting walking to less than 20 minutes despite conservative treatment. Imaging showed a right far-lateral L3–L4 disc herniation, foraminal stenosis, and compression of the exiting L3 nerve root, without dynamic instability. She underwent arthroscopic-assisted uniportal far-lateral discectomy, decompression, and bone-anchored annular repair through an extraforaminal corridor. Imaging on postoperative day 1 showed fragment removal and adequate decompression. At 15 months, telephone-reported leg pain and disability scores were improved; no examination or interval imaging was available.
What made this case unusual
The report applies arthroscopic-assisted uniportal surgery with bone-anchored annular repair through an extraforaminal corridor for far-lateral disc herniation; its contribution is this anatomical and procedural application, not a new repair technique.
Diagnostic / clinical pearl
For far-lateral lumbar disc herniation, correlate imaging with the exiting nerve-root symptoms and assess for segmental instability; this case illustrates an extraforaminal uniportal route for decompression and annular repair.
Why it matters
Telephone-only follow-up without examination or interval imaging documents patient-reported improvement but cannot establish structural healing, recurrence prevention, or long-term safety.