A rare case of L5-S1 right severe foraminal stenosis and paramedian disc herniation result in foot drop of right lower extremity: A case report

Abstract

Objective: the authors presented a extremely rare case of severe foraminal stenosis combined with huge lateral lumbar disc herniation 

Case presentation: The authors presented a 74 – year old, male with type II chronic diabetes, had severe pain of the dermatomal distribution of L5, S1 nerve roots, and foot-drop of the right lower limb. When we evaluated the patient’s MRI, the huge paramedian disc herniation of the right L5-S1 level was seen and the right L5-S1 laminotomy and discetomy were planned for the treatment of the patient. However, the clinical symptoms were not completely correlated with that MRI findings so that, we re-checked the MRI, particularly at the lumbosacral region, and the right severe foraminal stenosis of L5-S1 level was found. The patient underwent surgery with facetectomy, transforaminal interbody fusion, and pedicle screw fixation. After the operation, the patient has quickly reduced radiating pain of the right lower extremity, although the foot-drop was not improved. Because of the huge lateral lumbar disc herniation impression, that could affect the assessing the patient’s injury correctly, leaded consequences of a missing diagnosis of foraminal stenosis and inadequate surgery method.

Conclusion: It is essential to detail examination of the clinical manifestations and thorough assessment of MRI for evaluation of the correlation between the physical examination and MRI findings before making the decision of surgical method.