Performance of Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound in Thyroid Nodules: Review of Current State and Future Perspectives

2021

Simple Summary Ultrasound has been used as baseline imaging for thyroid nodules for decades; nevertheless, no single feature is sensitive or specific enough to exclude or confirm thyroid malignancy. Therefore, clinical practice and research still focus on less invasive diagnostic patterns to reduce unnecessary fine-needle aspiration biopsies or surgery. The main advantage of CEUS is the ability to assess the sequence and intensity of vascular perfusion and hemodynamics in the thyroid nodule, thus providing real-time characterization of nodule features, and considered a valuable new approach in the determination of benign vs. malignant nodules. In addition, contrast agents used in CEUS can h…