Evaluation of the effectiveness of the double indicator method of scintigraphy in the differential diagnosis of thyroid nodules

Aim. To evaluate the effectiveness of double indicator scintigraphy in the differential diagnosis of thyroid nodules. Methods. Analyzed was the data of radionuclide investigations of 25 patients with thyroid disease at the age of 36 to 72 years, who were operated on in 2009-2011. The radioisotope study was conducted in two stages. Evaluation of the scintigraphic uptake pattern of the radiopharmaceutical in the studied areas was performed visually and quantitatively. Results. The scintigraphic results were compared with cytological and histological studies. In the diagnosis of papillary thyroid cancer the sensitivity of the radioisotope investigation was 95%, specificity - 92%, diagnostic accuracy - 94%. The method was less precise and specific in the diagnosis of follicular cancer and macro-micro follicular adenomas (it gave positive results in the cases of adenoma and negative results in cases of follicular thyroid cancer). On average, the specificity of the double-phase radioisotope scintigraphy method using 99mTc-pertechnetate and technetril (99mTc-MIBI) in our study was 69%, accuracy - 75%, sensitivity - 79%. Conclusion. Radionuclide double-phase scintigraphy with the usage of 99mTc-pertechnetate and technetril (99mTc-MIBI) - is a highly informative method for the differential diagnosis of thyroid nodules, which can be used during atypical sonographic patterns and in the absence of clear histological data.

diagnosis, thyroid nodules, scintigraphy