Giant Tarlov Cysts with Rare Pelvic Extension: Report of 3 Cases and Literature Review.

Abstract

Giant presacral Tarlov cysts (TCs) with pelvic extension are extremely rare and have many special features that differ from normal TCs in examination, diagnosis, symptoms, and treatment. We report 3 rare cases of giant presacral TCs with pelvic extension and review the pertinent literature. We report 3 cases of giant presacral TCs with rare pelvic extension and analyzed the symptoms, diagnoses, and surgical procedures. Operations with the key point of blocking the inlet of the fistula from inside the dural sac were performed in all 3 cases. All 3 patients revealed alleviation of previous symptoms with no serious complications. Postoperative magnetic resonance imaging showed all the cysts were well blocked with no cyst recurrence. Giant TC with pelvic extension is extremely rare and often is discovered on gynecological ultrasound, where it might be misdiagnosed as adnexal mass. Different from patients with normal TCs, these patients also may present with abdominal symptoms like hydronephrosis, abdominal, or pelvic pain due to the cyst's ventral mass effect. Thus, patients with abdominal and back symptoms at the same time should be paid particular attention for lumbosacral magnetic resonance imaging examination to avoid misdiagnosis. Surgical procedures are recommended for symptomatic cases. However, cyst resection by laparotomy is doomed to postoperative recurrence because the fistula still exists. We describe a simple procedure with the key point of blocking the inlet of cyst fistula, which is more applicable and minimizes the probability of cyst recurrence.