Differentiation of benign from malignant thyroid nodules with acoustic radiation force impulse technique

Objective:The aim of our study was to assess the performance of acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) imaging to differentiate benign from malignant thyroid nodules.Methods:182 patients who needed thyroid surgery were examined. All patients and 50 healthy volunteers underwent ARFI sonoelastography, which quantitatively analysed the elasticity and hardness of the nodule's centre and periphery.Results:ARFI values showed a statistical significance between malignant nodules and benign nodules and common thyroid parenchyma, in both the centre and periphery of nodules (p   0.05). There was no significant difference between the nodule's centre and periphery of the elastic parameters in both the benign and malignant nodules. There was a statistically significant difference among the two areas (the central group and the peripheral group) under the receiver operating char...