The Intraneural Ganglion Cyst of the Tibial Nerve: A Case Report and Review of Literature

INTRODUCTION: The intraneural ganglion cyst of the tibial nerve is very rare, especially at the level of an ankle and a foot. There are 15 previous reports of the tibial intraneural ganglion cyst within the tarsal tunnel or the popliteal fossa. The authors present an infrequent case of the tibial intraneural ganglion at the level of the tarsal tunnel diagnosed by an ultrasound examination and provide a review of the case studies described earlier in the available literature. CASE REPORT: Patient, a 37-year-old Caucasian male, was admitted to the orthopedic outpatient clinic with the pain and the paresthesia of medial half of his right foot. He underwent an ultrasound examination which diagnosed the intraneural ganglion cyst of the tibial nerve. The patient was qualified for surgical treatment. The nerve was compressed to only 30% of its diameter. The nerve function returned in4 months post-operative and the patient presented no signs of the nerve disorder. CONCLUSION: In almost all analyzed articles, authors suggest that pathogenesis is connected with the retrograde extension of the synovial fluid from the adjacent joints or with the trauma. In our study, there was no history of trauma and there was no connection with the joint during operation. We believed that the pathogenesis of this disorder was multifactorial.