Objective:
To study the value of CT texture
analysis (CTTA)
parameters in
differential diagnosis of benign and malignant
thyroid nodules in Hashimoto’s
thyroiditis.
Methods:
From May. 2020 to Oct. 2021, 110
patients with
thyroid nodules in the background of Hashimoto’s
thyroiditis in the
Radiology Department of Nanjing Integrated
Hospital of Traditional
Chinese and Western
Medicine were selected, and CTTA was performed. CTTA
parameters (
entropy value, peak
state and skewness) were counted. The pathological
diagnosis results were taken as the "
gold standard". Statistical pathological examination results were used to compare the general clinical characteristics and CTTA
parameters of benign and malignant
thyroid nodules. The
receiver operating characteristic (ROC) was used to analyze the diagnostic value of CTTA
parameters for
thyroid nodules.
Results:
According to the clinicopathological examination, 43 of 110
patients with Hashimoto’s
thyroiditis were malignant,
accounting for 39.09%. Among them, 22 were
papillary carcinoma, 13 were follicular
carcinoma, 6 were
medullary carcinoma, and 2 were
malignant lymphoma; 67 cases were benign,
accounting for 60.91%, including 32
nodular goiters, 20 Hashimoto’s nodules, 8
thyroid adenomas, and 7 focal
inflammation. The levels of TSH, irregular shape, blurry border and calcification in
patients with malignant
thyroid nodules were higher than those in
patients with benign
thyroid nodules ( t/ χ2=13.167, 18.364, 20.180,17.621, P<0.001). In the background of Hashimoto’s
thyroiditis, there was no significant difference in the peak and skewness of CTTA
parameters between benign and malignant
thyroid nodules ( t=1.633, 1.382, P=0.105, 0.170). The
entropy value of
patients with malignant
thyroid nodules was higher than that of
patients with benign
thyroid nodules, and the difference was statistically significant ( t=9.862, P<0.001).
ROC analysis showed that the cut-off value of
entropy value for diagnosing benign and malignant
thyroid nodules was 6.28,
AUC value was 0.909, 95% CI was 0.839-0.955,
sensitivity was 86.05% (37/43), and
specificity was 88.06% (69/67) .
Conclusion:
CTTA
parameters in Hashimoto’s
thyroiditis patients with benign and malignant
thyroid nodules are different, and CTTA
parameters have certain diagnostic value for benign and malignant
thyroid nodules.