Physical Examination of the Thyroid: Accuracy in Detecting Thyroid Nodules and Frequency of Additional Findings
Authors' conclusion
Thyroid physical exam has limited diagnostic performance and leads to additional findings when followed by a thyroid ultrasound. Future efforts should be directed at improving the accuracy of thyroid physical exams or re-evaluating its routine use.
Study context
- Population
- Adults with first-time thyroid US after a documented thyroid physical exam, January 2015–September 2017; 65.1% female, 84.1% white, 54.4% primary care, mean age 50.8 years (SD 16.9)
- Participants
- 327 adults
- Comparison
- Thyroid physical exam vs thyroid US
- Outcome
- Diagnostic accuracy of physical exam in detecting thyroid nodules
Methodological detailsretrospective, observational, random sample
- Retrospective
- Observational
- Random sample
Performance
As reported in the abstract
Solitary thyroid nodule
| Test or model | Sensitivity | Specificity | Accuracy | NPV | PPV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Physical exam | 20.3% | 79.1% | 68.5% | 81.8% | 17.6% |
Physical exam
Sensitivity20.3%
Specificity79.1%
Accuracy68.5%
NPV81.8%
PPV17.6%
Further findings
| Outcome | Values |
|---|---|
| Multinodular goiter | Physical exam sensitivity 10.8% · specificity 96.5% · accuracy 55.4% · NPV 53.9 · PPV 73.9% |
| Additional nodules on subsequent thyroid US among palpable nodules | Physical exam 60% |
- Additional nodules on subsequent thyroid US among palpable nodules: 154 cases with palpable nodules
Parts of this Brief are withheld: the automatic checks could not confirm them against the abstract.
Original publication
Physical Examination of the Thyroid: Accuracy in Detecting Thyroid Nodules and Frequency of Additional Findings. Endocr Pract. Published 5 October 2023. doi:10.
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