Ultrasonographic Features in Recognition of Malignant Thyroid Nodule with Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology as the Gold Standard
Ultrasonographic Features: Malignant Thyroid Nodule with FNAC
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54393/pjhs.v7i1.2846Keywords:
Diagnostic Accuracy, Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology, Thyroid Malignancy, Positive Predictive ValueAbstract
A thyroid nodule is a discrete lesion within the thyroid gland that is radiologically distinct from the surrounding tissue. The diagnosis of these nodules is a common clinical procedure globally. Objectives: To determine the sensitivity, specificity, and predictive values of ultrasound for identifying malignant thyroid nodules, using fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) as the gold standard. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, 209 consecutive patients with suspected thyroid nodules were enrolled after providing written consent. Each participant underwent a cervical ultrasound performed by an experienced radiologist, which was followed by an FNAC. The Bethesda System was used for the cytological diagnosis. The diagnostic performance of ultrasound was calculated against the FNAC results, and data were analyzed using SPSS version 26.0. Results: The mean age of the 209 patients was 43.58 ± 9.87 years. Using FNAC as the gold standard, ultrasound demonstrated a diagnostic accuracy of 88.04%. The sensitivity was 86.3%, the specificity was 89.7%, the positive predictive value (PPV) was 88.89%, and the negative predictive value (NPV) was 87.27%. Conclusions: The study concludes that ultrasound characteristics are a highly sensitive and accurate method for identifying malignant thyroid nodules, with an overall diagnostic accuracy of 88.04%.
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