Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42038279›Full record

ArticleCase reports in neurological medicine2026

Migrated Sacral Facet Joint Cyst Mimicking a Tarlov Cyst: A Case Report.

Evangelos A Christodoulou, Konstantinos Kafchitsas

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Case reports in neurological medicine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

2 authors.

Evangelos A ChristodoulouSt. Vinzenz Hospital, Spine & Pain Clinic, Schloßstrasse 85, Düsseldorf, 40477, Germany.ORCID https://orcid.org/0009-0001-5541-8370
Konstantinos KafchitsasDepartment of Orthopaedic Surgery, Asklepios Hospital Lindenlohe 18, Schwandorf, 92421, Germany.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2750-2310

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

We report the case of a 78-year-old male presenting with debilitating left-sided S1 radicular pain, associated with a positive Lasègue sign and numbness in the S1 dermatome. The patient exhibited mild motor deficits, but his pain was severe enough to impair standing and ambulation. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed a cystic lesion at the S1 level; however, the exact etiology remained unclear-differential diagnoses included a Tarlov cyst or a facet joint cyst. No other spinal comorbidities were noticed. Initial conservative management, including intravenous analgesics and C-arm-guided S1 nerve root blocks, failed to provide relief. Due to persistent symptoms, surgical exploration was undertaken. Intraoperatively, a facet joint cyst was identified and successfully excised. Postoperative recovery was uneventful, and the patient reported significant pain relief and functional improvement. This case highlights an unusual presentation of a facet joint cyst located at the sacral level without a visible connection to the facet joint, raising diagnostic challenges on imaging.

Indexed as

differential diagnosisfacet joint cystlumbar spineMRIradicular painTarlov cyst

Identifiers

PMID42038279
PMCPMC13109618

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.