Thyroid Hormones, Autoantibodies, Ultrasonography, and Clinical Parameters for Predicting Thyroid Cancer

Table 5

Ultrasonographic characteristics of thyroid cancer.

Characteristics	Number of benign nodules	Number of malignant nodules	% malignant	value
Number of nodules				0.024
1	404	93	18.7	0.538
2	89	24	21.2	0.008
≥3	301	43	12.5
Size, mm (mean ± SE)	21.861 ± 0.485	23.295 ± 1.198		0.235
Composition				<0.001
Completely solid	387	122	24.0
Predominantly solid	200	27	11.9
Predominantly cystic	131	6	4.4
Completely cystic	76	5	6.2
Echogenicity				<0.001
Hypoechoic	273	100	26.8
Hyperechoic	111	21	15.9
Isoechoic	65	5	7.1
Mixed echoic	233	45	16.2
Anechoic	94	7	6.9
Margin				<0.001
Poorly defined	136	68	33.3
Well defined	640	110	14.7
Blood flow				<0.001
Absent	189	23	10.8
Peripheral	113	14	11.0
Intranodular	311	99	24.1
Peripheral-intranodular	164	41	20.0
Calcification				<0.001
None	517	80	13.4
Punctate	200	82	29.1
Coarse	59	16	21.3
Halo				0.109
None	761	171	18.3
Present	15	7	31.8

Comparison between the group with a single nodule to the group with 2 or more nodules.
Comparison between the group with <3 nodules to the group with ≥3 nodules.