Hospital-Based Ultra-Sonographic Prevalence and Spectrum of Thyroid Incidentalomas in Pakistani Population

Introduction: Thyroid incidentalomas (TIs) are clinically asymptomatic nodules found accidentally during imaging studies ordered for some other reasons. Being easily accessible, non-invasive, and inexpensive, thyroid ultrasound (US) is a key investigation in the management of thyroid nodules. Methods: This ultrasound-based cross-sectional study was performed in the radiology department of a major tertiary care hospital. Every second patient visiting the emergency department was a potential candidate for a thyroid ultrasound. Patients having ages greater than 20 years were included in the study. Results: A total of 250 patients were included in the study. Out of these, 175 were female and 75 were male. The majority (54.80%) were in the age group 21-30 years. Nodules were found in 65 (26%) patients and in the majority of cases (67.7%) they were multiple in number. Associated lymphadenopathy was seen in only one patient. Thyroid nodules were more common in females as compared to males (75.38% versus 24.62%). According to Thyroid Imaging and Reporting Data System (TI-RADS) classification, the majority of the nodules were falling in TI-RADS 1 (74%) followed by TI-RADS 3 (9.60%) and 4A (8.80%). Conclusion: The thyroid nodules are more commonly seen in females as compared to males. A significant association is seen between the frequency of thyroid nodules and increasing age. The majority of thyroid nodules fall in TI-RADS 1 category followed by TI-RADS 3 and 4A.