Surgical management of tailgut cysts: A report of two cases

Abstract

A tailgut cyst is an uncommon congenital developmental cyst that arises from the postnatal remnants of the primitive gut. These cysts are generally located in the retrorectal space. The rarity of this lesion and its anatomical position frequently lead to difficulties in its diagnosis and surgical management. Complete surgical resection remains the cornerstone of treatment, and numerous surgical approaches to achieve this objective have been described in the literature. We present 2 cases of tailgut cysts that were resected using a trans-sacral approach.We discuss the surgical management of these cases, including the operative approach that was adopted. Two cases of tailgut cysts that presented as incidentally detected retrorectal tumors are described here. A pelvic magnetic resonance imaging scan revealed a retrorectal multicystic tumor consistent with a tailgut cyst. The patients underwent surgery via a trans-sacral approach with coccygectomy. The histopathologic diagnosis for each patient was a tailgut cyst with no evidence of malignancy. Surgical approaches for tailgut cysts depend on the exact locations of the cysts and suspicions regarding the malignancies of the cysts. En bloc organ resection, including coccygectomy, is required if malignancy is suspected. We endorse the trans-sacral approach as a feasible, easy to perform, minimally invasive, and safe option for treating relatively low-lying tailgut cysts.