THYROID PROJECT
Sites of interest
Abstract
Thyroid nodules are very common in the general population. According to population-based studies conducted with adults in areas with iodine deficiency, approximately 4 to 7% of women and 1% of men have palpable nodules in the thyroid. However, the prevalence of nodules estimated by ultrasound examinations is substantially higher, reaching up to 68% of the population. The clinical importance of thyroid nodule research is that it is necessary to exclude the possibility of thyroid cancer, which occurs in 7-15% of cases depending on age, gender, history of radiation exposure, family history, and other factors.
Thermography is a method of obtaining thermal images of objects that are at a temperature above absolute zero. In the thermogram, the normal thyroid does not appear. However, when in hypermetabolism, whether nodular or diffuse, due to increased angiogenesis and blood flow, there is easily detectable heat emission through the skin.
This database contains images and clinical and histopathological data collected from patients with thyroid nodules recruited from the Endocrinology and Surgery Outpatient Clinics of the Hospital Universitário Antônio Pedro - HUAP of the Fluminense Federal University - UFF in routine consultations submitted to a clinical evaluation. The performance of the thermography and its results are compared with the thyroid scan, cytopathologic examination obtained through PAAF and the histopathological examination of those who underwent surgery.
One of the objectives with the database is to evaluate the importance of the use of thermography in the investigation of thyroid nodules and their real role in the identification of malignant nodules. Thermography is a low-cost, easy-to-perform, risk-free examination, and its realization may be an additional tool in the identification of thyroid nodules suspected of malignancy. All patients enrolled in the study signed the Free and Informed Consent Term (Termo de Consentimento Livre e Esclarecido - TCLE).