Endocrine Abstracts

The purpose of this study was to identify the prevalence of Incidental Thyroid Nodules (ITN’s) on Computed Tomography (CT) scans of the chest, assess variation in reporting by radiologists and to apply recent guidance to assess which nodules may require further investigation. We performed a retrospective review of 742 CT scans which included the chest performed in a regional hospital. Thyroid abnormalities were reported in 9.8% (n=76) of CT scans. There was considerable variation in reporting of nodules with the size of the nodule reported in 45% of scans with nodules present (n=14/31), with five of these meeting American College of Radiology Criteria for further investigation. In the remaining 17 patients where a nodule was identified its size and shape were not further clarified. General descriptions such as ‘Multiple nodules’, ‘Multinodular Goitre’ and ‘Bilateral nodularity’ were given in 43% of scans with thyroid abnormality (n=33/76). In these instances no discrete size of the largest nodule was given. Calcifications were reported in 10 cases. Our study highlights the heterogeneity of reporting of ITN’s and the need for consistent reporting criteria in keeping with available evidence to identify nodules which may require further evaluation. Clarification and standardisation in this area can have the dual effect of reducing the need for unnecessary investigations and highlighting nodules in need of further workup.