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Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound in the Management of Thyroid Nodules

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Book cover Thyroid Ultrasound and Ultrasound-Guided FNA

Thyroid nodules are discovered by palpation in 3–7% of subjects in the general population, but an epidemic of clinically unapparent thyroid lesions is detected by high-resolution ultrasonography (US) of the cervical region. The clinical importance of thyroid nodules, besides the infrequent local compressive symptoms or thyroid dysfunction, is the possibility of thyroid cancer, which occurs in about 5% of all thyroid nodules. Thus it is essential to improve our diagnostic tools to avoid the use of unnecessary diagnostic surgery.

Brightness-mode US is currently the most accurate imaging test to evaluate solitary thyroid nodules or multinodular goiters. Thyroid US results in improved management for patients, with clinical findings suggestive of thyroid nodules. Many patients either have a palpable but not suspicious nodule, or have incidentally revealed but sonographically relevant nodules that warrant fine needle aspiration biopsy. Unfortunately, in most cases US characteristics cannot unequivocally distinguish benign and malignant lesions. Color Doppler US was proposed to evaluate nodule vascularity, since hypervascularity with an intranodular chaotic arrangement of blood vessels is supposed to be associated with malignancy. However, several reports have failed to consistently identify cancer on color Doppler alone

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Diagnostic Imaging Albano, Albano, Italy

    Enrico Papini MD, Rinaldo Guglielmi MD & Filomena Graziano MD

  2. Albano, Italy

    Giancarlo Bizzarri MD, Antonio Bianchini MD, Francesco Lonero MD & Sara Pacella MD

  3. Department of Radiology and Diagnostics Imaging, Ospedale Regina Apostolorum, Albano, Italy

    Claudio M. Pacella MD

Authors
  1. Enrico Papini MD
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  2. Giancarlo Bizzarri MD
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  3. Antonio Bianchini MD
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  4. Rinaldo Guglielmi MD
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  5. Filomena Graziano MD
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  6. Francesco Lonero MD
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  7. Sara Pacella MD
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  8. Claudio M. Pacella MD
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. 1741 Barcelona Way, 32789, Winter Park, FL, USA

    H. Jack Baskin M.D.,MACE

  2. 3522 North 3rd Avenue, 85613, Phoenix, AZ, USA

    Daniel S. Duick M.D.,MACE

  3. Thyroid Center of New Hampshire, 5 Coliseum Avenue, 03603, Nashua, NH, USA

    Robert A. Levine M.D.,MACE

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© 2008 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC

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Papini, E. et al. (2008). Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound in the Management of Thyroid Nodules. In: Baskin, H.J., Duick, D.S., Levine, R.A. (eds) Thyroid Ultrasound and Ultrasound-Guided FNA. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-77634-7_10

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-77634-7_10

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-0-387-77633-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-0-387-77634-7

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

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