Figure 1.

Schematic drawing and intraoperative views of the surgical technique. A. The basic principle of transforaminal approach is that the landing point should be as close to the target as possible and that the exiting nerve root should not be irritated. B. A large disc fragment is removed through a working sheath. C. At the final step, the anatomical details are well demonstrated including the decompressed NR, the PLL, and the maternal disc (D). NR = nerve root, PLL = posterior longitudinal ligament.