Thyroid stiffness assessment by acoustic radiation force impulse elastography (ARFI)

Area of Science:

• Thyroidology
• Medical Imaging
• Rheology

Background:

• Thyroid diseases, including Graves' disease and chronic autoimmune thyroiditis (CAT), are common endocrine disorders.
• Accurate diagnosis and monitoring of thyroid pathology are crucial for effective patient management.
• Elastography offers a non-invasive method to assess tissue stiffness, potentially aiding in thyroid disease evaluation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare thyroid tissue elasticity values in healthy individuals, patients with Graves' disease, and patients with CAT.
• To evaluate the utility of Acoustic Radiation Force Impulse (ARFI) elastography in differentiating thyroid pathologies.

Main Methods:

• Prospective study involving 74 subjects: 23 healthy, 29 with Graves' disease, and 22 with CAT.
• ARFI elastography measurements (10 per lobe) were performed on the right and left thyroid lobes using a convex probe.
• Median elastographic values (m/sec) were calculated for each lobe, and a mean ARFI value was determined.

Main Results:

• Thyroid stiffness was significantly lower in healthy subjects (2.07±0.44 m/sec) compared to those with Graves' disease (2.82±0.47 m/sec, p<0.001) and CAT (2.49±0.48 m/sec, p=0.004).
• A significant difference in thyroid stiffness was observed between healthy individuals and those with autoimmune thyroid pathology (Graves' disease and CAT) (2.07±0.44 m/sec vs. 2.68±0.50 m/sec, p<0.001).

Conclusions:

• ARFI elastography is a valuable tool for assessing diffuse thyroid gland pathology.
• The method demonstrates sufficient accuracy (AUROC=0.80) in predicting the presence of diffuse thyroid diseases.
• ARFI elastography can differentiate thyroid tissue elasticity in various thyroid conditions.