Clinical experience in a high-resolution thyroid nodule clinic

Background and objectives The finding of a thyroid nodule is a very common occurrence in clinical practice. Management of thyroid nodules requires a multidisciplinary approach that may be eased by a high-resolution thyroid nodule clinic. We report our clinical experience and outcomes in a high-resolution thyroid nodule clinic. Patients and methods All patients referred to Virgen de la Victoria Hospital (Malaga) from 2005 to 2007 were evaluated following thyroid nodule guidelines. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS software. Results In the study period, 658 patients (mean age 48.6 years, 89.8% females) were seen at the thyroid nodule clinic. Thyroid nodules were discovered in 85.5% of patients. Mean nodule diameter was 1.96 cm. Of these nodules, 74.2% were solid, 55.8% hypoechogenic, and 4.7% showed microcalcifications. Fine needle aspiration (FNA) was performed in 475 patients (76.5% of all cytological samples were benign, 19.1% had suspected malignancy, 2.1% were malignant, and 2.3% inadequate). Referral for surgery was required in 23.3% of patients (mainly because of nodule size or suspected malignancy). Malignancy was confirmed in 24.9% of nodules. Sensitivity and specificity of cytology (considering biopsy as gold standard) were 81.8% and 94.7% respectively. Conclusions Implementation of a high-resolution thyroid nodule clinic decreases delay in diagnosis and optimizes available resources, thus providing for satisfactory clinical outcomes.