Transforaminal Full-Endoscopic Surgery for a Juxta-Facet Cyst Under Local Anesthesia:A 2.5-Year Follow-Up of...

A juxta facet cyst is a relatively uncommon disease that is usually treated by cyst removal and nerve decompression surgery. Nowadays, these cysts can be removed by endoscopic surgery, which is minimally invasive and allows rapid recovery. In this report, we present a 60-year-old man with a left-sided juxta facet cyst at L4 / 5 who underwent transforaminal full-endoscopic cyst removal and left L5 nerve root decompression under local anesthesia. The surgery was performed via an 8-mm incision while the patient was awake and there were no complications. The patient's leg pain score decreased to 1 / 10 postoperatively and he returned to work 2 weeks after the surgery. There has been no recurrence during 2.5 years of follow-up. Interestingly, the ligamentum flavum repair has been observed in the time since the surgery. We believe that transforaminal full-endoscopic surgery under local anesthesia is the least invasive surgery for juxta facet cysts. J. Med. Invest. 73 : 88-91, February, 2026.