A comparison of the efficiency of diagnostic ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging of cervical lymph nodes in papillary thyroid carcinoma

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Iqbal, Muhammad Asad^{a; 1} | Wang, Xian^{b; 1} | Guoliang, Zhang^c | Moazzam, Nida Fatima^d | Shahid, Ahmad Daniyal^d | Qian, Xiaoqin^{b; *} | Qian, Wei^{a; *}

Affiliations: [a] Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, Affiliated People’s Hospital of Jiangsu University, (The First People’s Hospital of Zhenjiang), Jiangsu Province, China | [b] Department of Ultrasound, Affiliated People’s Hospital of Jiangsu University, (The First People’s Hospital of Zhenjiang), Jiangsu Province, China | [c] Department of General Surgery, Affiliated People’s Hospital of Jiangsu University, (The First People’s Hospital of Zhenjiang), Jiangsu Province, China | [d] School of Medicine, Jiangsu University, Jiangsu Province, China

Correspondence: [*] Corresponding author: Dr. Wei Qian, Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, Affiliated People’s Hospital of Jiangsu University, 8 Dianli Road, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province, China, 212002. Tel.: +86 15358586188; E-mail: dwqian@yahoo.com and Dr. Xiaoqin Qian, Department of Ultrasound, Affiliated People’s Hospital of Jiangsu University, 8 Dianli Road, Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province, China, 212002. Tel.: +86 13813186750; E-mail: yz_tyz1030@126.com.

Note: [1] Two first authors –contribution equally to this study.

Abstract: OBJECTIVE:To compare and evaluate diagnostic capabilities of preoperative ultrasonography (US) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the cervical lymph nodes of patients with papillary thyroid cancer. METHODS:A retrospective dataset involving 156 patients who had undergone thyroidectomy and preoperative US and MRI was assembled. Among these, 69 had cervical lymph node metastasis and 87 did not. At least four radiologists unilaterally and spontaneously investigated the US and MRI attributes of the cervical lymph nodes. The efficiency of diagnostic imaging for cervical lymph nodes, including their true-positive rate or sensitivity, true-negative rate or specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and predictive accuracy were analysed and assessed. RESULTS:In the assessment of cervical lymph node metastases of papillary thyroid cancer, the diagnostic sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value, and accuracy of diagnostic US vs. MRI were 58.0% vs. 79.7%, 69.0% vs. 83.9%, 59.7% vs. 79.7%, 67.4% vs. 83.9%, and 64.1% vs. 82.1%, respectively. The accuracy consistency of the two imaging modalities was 83.5%. CONCLUSIONS:MRI is more effective than US in diagnosing and assessing cervical lymph node metastases of papillary thyroid cancer.

Keywords: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), ultrasound imaging (US), cervical lymph node, thyroid cancer, comparison between MRI and US

DOI: 10.3233/XST-210927

Journal: Journal of X-Ray Science and Technology, vol. 29, no. 6, pp. 1033-1044, 2021