Evaluation of ultrasound reporting for thyroid cancer diagnosis and surveillance

Despite the importance of ultrasound imaging in thyroid disease care, ultrasound reports vary greatly in the features described. It is essential that ultrasound reports contain and present all components necessary for a clinical decision in a reader-friendly format.

One hundred ninety thyroid and neck ultrasound reports were scored using the universal ultrasound report template developed by Su et al, along with the American Thyroid Association (ATA) and the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists/Associazione Medici Endocrinologi/European Thyroid Association (AACE/AME/ETA) guidelines. All ultrasounds were performed on patients seen between August and November 2015 by a single surgeon (M.L.U), and originated from a variety of physicians and institutions.

An average of 30.9% of Su et al's criteria was satisfactorily included in the reports. Similar results were reached when the ATA and the AACE/AME/ETA guidelines were applied as scoring templates.

Our results reveal the wide variation in ultrasound reporting. The standardization of ultrasound reporting would help to improve physicians' ability to properly diagnose and manage patients with thyroid disease.