The irony of the transforaminal approach: A comparative cohort study of transforaminal endoscopic lumbar discectomy for foraminal versus paramedian lumbar disc herniation

Transforaminal endoscopic lumbar discectomy (TELD) is useful for soft lumbar disc herniation (LDH). Although the transforaminal approach can reach the foraminal disc zone, the risk of exiting nerve root irritation along the path is considerable. Few studies have assessed the difficulties of TELD for foraminal LDH. The objective of this study is to compare the clinical results of TELD between foraminal or far-lateral LDH and paramedian LDH. Between June 2016 and July 2017, 135 consecutive patients with single-level LDH were treated with TELD for 2 years. Among them, 25 patients had foraminal or far-lateral LDH (foraminal group), and the remaining 110 patients had central or subarticular LDH (paramedian group). Perioperative data and clinical outcomes were evaluated using the visual analog pain scale, Oswestry Disability Index, and modified Macnab criteria. The foraminal group showed a higher rate of significant access pain (24.00% vs 8.19%, P < .05). The foraminal group also had a longer duration of surgery, length of hospital stay, and return to work (all P < .05). Pain scores and functional status were significantly improved in both groups. Although there were no differences in the outcomes at 2 years postoperatively, early pain and disability at 6 weeks were higher in the foraminal group. Ironically, the early clinical results of TELD for foraminal LDH may be less favorable than those for paramedian LDH. Therefore, great care should be taken during TELD for foraminal or far-lateral LDH.