Preliminary study on spectral parameters of various pathological types of thyroid malignancies

LI Lin; LUO Dehong; ZHAO Yanfeng; HU Lei; GUO Wei; LIN Meng; ZHAO Xinming; ZHOU Chunwu

doi:10.19300/j.2017.L4601

Abstract：Objective To analyze the imaging manifestations and spectral parameters of various pathological types of thyroid malignancies. Methods Sixty-seven cases with malignant tumors of thyroid were included in the present retrospective study. The morphological manifestations and the spectral parameters were analyzed. All the patients underwent spectral CT scan with Discovery CT750 HD scanner in gemstone spectral imaging (GSI) mode. The morphological manifestations of lesions were analyzed on the optimal monochromatic images. The iodine concentration (IC), water concentration (WC), normalized iodine concentration (NIC), and spectral HU curve slope (K) were measured and analyzed with GSI Viewer. The spectral parameters of different pathological types of lesions were compared using One-Way ANOVA. Multiple comparisons between groups were performed using LSD-t. Results The morphological features of thyroid malignancies were as follows:single lesion (57 cases, 85.1%), irregular shape (46 cases, 68.7%), indistinct margin (45 cases, 67.2%), heterogeneous density (48 cases, 71.6%), and presence of calcification (21 cases, 31.3%). There was no significant difference in WC among various types of malignant tumors (P>0.05). The IC, NIC, and K values of papillary carcinoma, follicular carcinoma, and medullary carcinoma were higher than that of anaplastic carcinoma and lymphoma (P<0.05). The NIC of papillary carcinoma was lower than that of medullary carcinoma (P<0.05).There were no significant differences in remained parameters between each paired two groups (P>0.05). Conclusion The morphological features and spectrum parameters are different in various pathological types of thyroid malignanies, and are helpful for the diagnosis and differential diagnosis.