Intralesional saline injection for effective ultrasound-guided aspiration of benign viscous cystic thyroid nodules

PURPOSE: We aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of vigorous saline injection for viscous cystic thyroid nodules. METHODS: Eighteen patients who underwent ultrasound-guided aspiration for viscous cystic thyroid nodules using a saline injection were included in our study. After failing to aspirate the cyst by the usual method, we vigorously injected saline into the cyst in multiple directions to break up and liquefy the viscous cystic contents to enable aspiration. The initial and the residual volume of the nodule were calculated, and the volume reduction rate and the time taken to perform the aspiration were recorded. RESULTS: The mean volume of the cystic nodules before aspiration was 11.0 mL (range, 1.2 to 26.0 mL), while the postaspiration volume was 4.2 mL (range, 0.2 to 14.5 mL). The mean aspirated volume was 63.7% of the initial volume. The mean procedure time was 12.4 minutes (range, 5 to 26 minutes). There were no significant complications related to the procedure. CONCLUSION: A vigorous saline injection followed by aspiration can be a useful method to aspirate viscous cystic thyroid nodules as a prestep for further intervention or simple management.