Observation on application effect of modified ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration cytology in examination of thyroid nodules

ZHANG Junjie; ZHANG Yu; ZHENG Qiaojun; YANG Sihan; YUE Ling

doi:10.3969/j.issn.1674-3806.2026.01.09

Abstract：Objective To observe the application effect of modified ultrasound-guided fine-needle aspiration cytology(US-FNAC)in examination of thyroid nodules.Methods A total of 330 patients with thyroid nodules who received US-FNAC in General Hospital of Central Theater Command from March 2023 to July 2024 were recruited.The patients were divided into control group(treated with conventional US-FNAC)and observation group(treated with modified US-FNAC)by random number table method,with 165 patients in each group.In the control group,3 patients were excluded subsequently due to the previous history of partial thyroidectomy,and 2 patients were excluded after enrollment because they were diagnosed with nasopharyngeal carcinoma and gastrointestinal stromal tumor.Ultimately,160 patients were included in the control group and 165 patients in the observation group.The control group was treated with non-aspiration conventional US-FNAC using a single-needle,intranodular multi-point puncture technique.The puncture method of the observation group was modified as follows on the basis of that of the control group:(1)sequential punctures using a double-needle technique;(2)fine-needle intranodular multi-site rotating and lifting;(3)syringe negative pressure aspiration.The specimen satisfaction rate of cytological examination,pain condition,and incidence of examination-related adverse reactions were compared between the two groups.Results The specimen satisfaction rate of cytological examination in the observation group was significantly higher than that in the control group(92.12%vs 81.88%,χ2=7.578,P=0.006).The results of subgroup analysis showed that the specimen satisfaction rates of cytological examination in the observation group were significantly higher than those in the control group in the following stratifications:age＜60 years,nodules located in the lower pole,maximum nodule diameter＜5 mm,maximum nodule diameter≥10 mm,nodules with microcalcifications and nodules with macrocalcifications,with statistically significant differences(P＜0.05).The pain condition in the control group was milder than that in the observation group,with statistically significant difference(P＜0.05).There were no statistically significant differences in the incidence rates of hypertension,tachycardia and puncture site bleeding between the two groups after the examination(P＞0.05).Conclusion The modified US-FNAC technique can significantly increase the specimen satisfaction rate for cytological examination of thyroid nodules,and has good clinical application value.