With the change of people’s health concept, annual health checkups have become a guarantee for people to maintain their health. Ultrasound examination of the thyroid gland has become an indispensable part of health checkups. Many people’s thyroid ultrasound results indicate one kind of “abnormality” or another, and some friends are even very worried if there is a “big problem” with the thyroid. So, how do you interpret the thyroid test report issued by your doctor? Shanghai Long March Hospital General Surgery Department Zhang Wei 1. In fact, thyroid nodules, thyroid masses (lumps), and thyroid occupancies are all described as structures found by the ultrasound doctor on the ultrasound machine that are different from normal thyroid tissue. These are only morphological descriptions, meaning that the doctor has found a “little something” on the thyroid gland. There is no need to be nervous about what it is, as most so-called nodules are benign. You don’t have to worry about a “nodule” on your thyroid because the doctor’s detailed description of the nodule is a better indicator of the nature of the nodule. 2. Why is the size of the nodule different from hospital to hospital? Measuring the size of thyroid nodules is an important part of a doctor’s description of the nature of thyroid nodules. However, since most thyroid nodules are not round, the angle and direction of measurement varies from doctor to doctor and may vary from hospital to hospital. There is no need to get hung up on why the size of the thyroid nodule varies. It makes more sense to repeat the ultrasound at the same hospital after a few months to see if there is any change in the size of the nodule. It should be noted that the size of thyroid malignant tumor is often constant, so it needs to be judged in combination with other indicators. 3.What is meant by unclear border of thyroid nodules? The so-called clear border or unclear border is a doctor’s judgment of whether the nodule has an envelope or not. The unclear border is like the effect of a drop of ink on rice paper, which often indicates that the nodule is more active and the cells have a tendency to move outward, which is a very critical indicator for clinical judgment of the nature of the tumor. Compared with the size of nodules, nodules with indistinct borders may have higher malignancy and need to be closely monitored. 4.What is calcification? Calcification is a very important clinical feature of thyroid nodules. If ultrasound indicates fine dotted or sandy calcification, especially when combined with indistinct borders, it often indicates that the nodule is malignant. In the past, coarse calcification was often a feature of benign nodules, but in recent years, there have been many nodules with coarse calcification that were eventually diagnosed as malignant. Therefore, thyroid nodules that are combined with calcification should be actively managed. 5. What is glial retention? Glial retention is often reported as a “water bubble” in the process of thyroid hormone synthesis and is not a tumor at all. Therefore, even if there is about 25px of glial retention, long-term follow-up is sufficient and no further treatment is needed. 6.What is a cystic nodule? The formation of cystic nodules is due to rapid growth of thyroid tumor and intra-tumor bleeding. Therefore, the solid part is the tumor itself and the cystic part is the liquefied blood. Generally speaking, most cystic nodules are benign and even if they grow rapidly, they are merely caused by intratumoral hemorrhage. Small cystic nodules do not require surgery, but only larger cystic nodules (50px or more) need to be treated. 7. What is echogenicity of the thyroid? This is a clinician’s description of the thyroid signal, which shows the uniformity or lack of texture of the thyroid tissue and the presence or absence of local edema. It is often associated with inflammation of the thyroid gland and is not a major problem in itself. Therefore, the most important part of the ultrasound report on the thyroid gland is the size of the nodule, the clarity of the border and the presence of calcification. This is the basis for the doctor to determine the nature of the nodule and whether surgery is needed. Of course, ultrasound results alone can only make a preliminary judgment. While the accuracy of an experienced ultrasonographer’s examination is certainly higher, the final diagnosis needs to be established by a combination of clinical examination, puncture cytology and pathological examination for surgical resection.