Correlations of neck ultrasound and pathology in cervical lymph node of papillary thyroid carcinoma

Abstract Background: High-resolution sonography is becoming a method of choice for the detection and diagnosis of cervical lymph node metastasis in patients with papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC). The purpose of this study is to assess the diagnostic accuracy of neck ultrasound (US) in the detection of lymph node metastases from PTC. Methods: Data for all patients with papillary thyroid cancers and preoperative neck US were reviewed retrospectively. The diagnostic accuracy of US was determined according to whether histologically confirmed cancer was present in surgical cervical lymph node specimens. Results: A total of 206 patients (149 central and 57 central and lateral lymph nodes dissection) were included. Their mean age was 56 years (14–88 years). Central and lateral lymph nodes were involved in 68% (n = 141 patients; 141/206) and 60% (n = 34 patients; 34/57) of cases, respectively. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value of US in predicting papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) metastasis in the central neck were 69%, 71%, 84% and 51% respectively, and in the lateral neck were 85%, 65%, 78% and 75% respectively. Conclusions: Preoperative neck US is a valuable tool in the detection of cervical lymph node metastases from papillary thyroid cancer and can provide reliable information to assist in surgical management.