Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL ULTRASOUND, cilt.1, sa.11, ss.1-8, 2025 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
Purpose
Thyroid disorders in infancy significantly impact development, necessitating early and accurate diagnosis, essential but clinically challenging. Two-dimensional shear wave elastography (2D-SWE) has emerged as a promising tool for thyroid assessment; however, normative values for infants aged 0–12 months are still lacking. This study aimed to establish preliminary reference values for thyroid stiffness and volume in asymptomatic infants and to explore their relationship with age and sex.
Methods
A total of 88 asymptomatic infants (40 females, 48 males, aged 0–12 months) referred for thyroid/neck ultrasonography (US) due to mild neck asymmetry, suspected fullness, or family history of thyroid disease were included in the study. Participants showed no clinical signs of thyroid dysfunction or sonographic abnormalities. Thyroid volume and stiffness were measured using gray-scale US and SWE. Statistical analyses included the Shapiro–Wilk test for normality, the Kruskal–Wallis and Mann–Whitney U tests for group comparisons, and Spearman's correlation analysis.
Results
Total thyroid volume increased with age, from 0.52 mL (0–60 days) to 1.23 mL (181–365 days). Mean thyroid stiffness remained stable during the first 180 days (5.93–6.27 kPa) but showed a notable increase after 180 days (6.88 kPa). Sex-based analysis showed no significant differences in thyroid volumes; however, males exhibited higher right lobe stiffness. Moderate positive correlations were found between left lobe stiffness and both age and total thyroid volume.
Conclusion
This study establishes the first preliminary reference values for thyroid stiffness and volume in asymptomatic infants. Our findings suggest that SWE may serve as a valuable, non-invasive method for early thyroid assessment in infancy, potentially supporting early detection and monitoring of thyroid pathologies.