Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound in Thyroid Interventional Procedures
摘要
Contrast-enhanced ultrasound imaging (CEUS) originated in the late 1960s, thanks to the discovery that the injection of agitated saline solution causes a detectable signal change during ultrasound. The thyroid gland has a high blood flow in relation to its low weight, which favors contrast studies of this gland. This characteristic makes the thyroid gland particularly susceptible to being studied with contrast and could also explain why many thyroid nodules can bleed internally in stressful situations. The goal of minimally invasive treatments is to induce coagulative necrosis, and the coagulation of vessels results in ischemia. Therefore, it makes perfect sense to study the effect of these percutaneous treatments with CEUS, which allows us to assess microvascularization and evaluate the effectiveness of the procedure. The application of CEUS extends to benign thyroid nodules, thyroid carcinomas, parathyroid adenomas, metastatic lymph nodes, and local recurrences.