Understanding Thyroid Ultrasound Results

This is an automatically translated article.

The article was professionally consulted by Specialist Doctor I Vu Thi Hanh - Department of Diagnostic Imaging - Vinmec Hai Phong International General Hospital.
Thyroid ultrasound is a painless, fast procedure that helps detect thyroid abnormalities and early stages of cancer. If you have a family history of thyroid disease or suspect you have thyroid disease, an ultrasound is needed to screen for early disease.

1. What is a thyroid ultrasound?

Ultrasound is a painless procedure that converts sound waves into images of the structures of the body's organs. Thyroid ultrasound is indicated to check for abnormalities in the thyroid gland, including:
● Abnormalities in thyroid size.
● Abnormalities of thyroid parenchyma
-Diffuse damage to thyroid parenchyma.
-Local lesions in thyroid parenchyma (cysts, benign nodules, malignant nodules)

2. When to order thyroid ultrasound?

A thyroid ultrasound is usually ordered after a thyroid function test shows abnormal results or your doctor observes a raised area in your neck. Ultrasound can also help evaluate thyroid function.
Thyroid ultrasound is also often ordered as part of a routine checkup to help your doctor understand your general health. Your doctor may also order a thyroid ultrasound when he notices swelling, pain, or an infection that is suspected to be related to the thyroid gland.
Ultrasound is also indicated as part of a biopsy of the thyroid gland or surrounding tissues to check for cytologic abnormalities, if present.

3. What to prepare before thyroid ultrasound?

Before entering the ultrasound, you should remove the necklace and other accessories from the neck area. In addition, you are also asked to take off your shirt to expose your neck area and lie on your back when you enter the ultrasound room.
To improve the quality of your thyroid ultrasound images, your doctor may recommend injecting a contrast agent, most commonly used Lumason or Levovist, into your body (as needed).

4. What is the use of ultrasound in diagnosing thyroid disease?

Thyroid ultrasound can provide doctors with valuable information about growths (tumors) observed in the neck such as:
● Tumor characteristics: liquid or solid, borderline, long axis of the thyroid gland. mass, mass size, is there any calcification?...
Degree of tumor growth
Exact location of tumor
Invasion of mass into adjacent organs
Perfusion properties of color Doppler tumor.

5. Understanding Thyroid Ultrasound Results

The most awaited thyroid ultrasound result is whether the patient has thyroid cancer or not. Thyroid cancer by ultrasound can show through localized mass images.
However, the majority of masses detected on ultrasound are not cancerous. The study found that only 1 in 111 people who had the test had an ultrasound for thyroid cancer, of which more than half had been previously diagnosed with no cancer.

6. Thyroid ultrasound procedure

Position: You will be instructed to lie on your back, exposing your neck area, or sitting upright in some cases. ● Conduct ultrasound: The radiologist will apply gel to the neck area, bring the transducer up to the thyroid gland, check each right and left lobe, scan from top to bottom in a horizontal direction, and then rotate the transducer vertically. Scanning from the outside to the inside of the thyroid gland.
● Imaging: Thyroid images are saved, including normal and abnormal images.
Thyroid ultrasound does not cause any adverse health effects. Therefore, you can resume normal activities as soon as the ultrasound is finished.

7. Follow-up after thyroid ultrasound

Depending on the ultrasound results, the doctor may recommend follow-up instructions. It could be:
● Biopsy: A biopsy is done by inserting a long, thin needle into the area containing a cyst on the thyroid gland to check for cancer cells.
● Order another type of ultrasound: If abnormalities are found, the doctor may order another ultrasound to see the thyroid gland more clearly.
● Surgery: If the tumor is benign, your doctor may recommend surgery to remove it.
● Make an appointment for a routine thyroid exam: If a thyroid ultrasound is part of the physical exam or if there is a family history of thyroid disease.
Vinmec International General Hospital is one of the hospitals that not only ensures professional quality with a team of leading medical doctors, modern equipment and technology, but also stands out for its examination and consultation services. comprehensive and professional medical consultation and treatment; civilized, polite, safe and sterile medical examination and treatment space. Customers when choosing to perform tests here can be completely assured of the accuracy of test results.
Doctor Hanh has 12 years of experience in the field of Diagnostic Imaging. The doctor has the strength to train & perform tissue elastography with compression pulse and doppler echocardiography, cell aspiration, thyroid cyst and mammary gland under the guidance of ultrasound.

Please dial HOTLINE for more information or register for an appointment HERE. Download MyVinmec app to make appointments faster and to manage your bookings easily.

Article referenced source: healthline.com