Role of XXXX in the management of thyroid nodules.

@entity1 @entity400 @entity1374
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the degree of utilisation, the accuracy and the effect of @entity400 ( @entity400 ) in @entity1 with nodular @entity1374 . DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: King Khalid University Hospital, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. SUBJECTS: Four hundred and twenty eight @entity1 with @entity1374 who were treated surgically were reviewed. The @entity400 of 201 @entity1 were compared with the post-operative histopathological findings. RESULTS: Most of the @entity1 (69%) presented with nodular @entity1374 (solitary and multinodular) and among this group 31.4% did not undergo @entity400 pre-operatively. In more than 76%, the @entity400 resulted in a definite cytologic diagnosis. A sensitivity of 71.4% and a specificity of 96.4% was achieved. CONCLUSION: If @entity400 were used routinely in the initial evaluation of @entity1 with thyroid nodules it could have an enormous effect on their management. It reduces the number of @entity1 going for thyroidectomy and eliminates the need for nuclear scans to screen @entity1 with thyroid nodules. Therefore, we recommend @entity400 to be part of the initial evaluation of all @entity1 with nodular @entity1374 .
