Ultrasound-Guided Fine-needle Aspiration of Thyroid Nodules

There are many benefits to performing an ultrasound examination prior to performing a fine-needle aspiration (FNA) as discussed in Chap. 6. They include determining the size and position of a nodule, which allows better selection of needle length and needle size. In patients having multinodular goiter, ultrasound assures biopsy of the dominant nodule or the nodules most likely to be malignant-those having microcalcifications, increased vascularity, marked hypoechogenicity, blurred irregular borders or other characteristics associated with malignancy. Finally, ultrasound may redirect the FNA to other areas of suspicion, such as an enlarged lymph node or a parathyroid adenoma.