Author(s)

Kunlin Ye^1,2, Yongyao Kuang¹, Jianye Liang³, Xi Xu¹, Changzheng Shi¹, Qingqing Cheng¹, Zijie Jiang¹, Ziyun Xiang^2*, Liangping Luo^1*

¹Department of Medical Imaging Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Jinan University, Guangzhou, China.
²Department of Medical Imaging, Longgang District People’s Hospital of Shenzhen, Shenzhen, China.
³Department of Medical Imaging, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, State Key Laboratory of Oncology in South China, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Medicine, Guangzhou, China.

Objectives: To evaluate the diagnostic performance of the quantitative iodine parameters, including Iodine Concentration (IC), Normalized Iodine Concentration (NIC), and λ_HU, in distinguishing malignant and benign thyroid nodules. Methods: Relevant studies were searched from Web of Science, PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure database and other complementary sources from inception to May 20, 2020. Study selection, data extraction, quality assessment, and data analyses were performed following the Cochrane standards and the PRISMA-DTA guideline. Results: Eight studies were included (595 patients with 737 thyroid nodules). The pooled sensitivity, specificity and summary diagnostic odds ratio of IC were 79% (95% CI: 69% - 86%), 76% (95% CI: 65% - 84%) and 11 (95% CI: 5 - 27) respectively; those of NIC were 78% (95% CI: 70% - 85%), 80% (95% CI: 74% - 85%) and 15 (95% CI: 9 - 24) respectively; those of λ_HU were 80% (95% CI: 71% - 87%), 77% (95% CI: 70% - 83%) and 14 (95% CI: 8 - 24) respectively. Conclusion: DECT can be a potential evaluation tool for thyroid nodules. The NIC may be the most sensitive iodine parameter and could be comparable between different DECT machines in thyroid nodule assessment.

Thyroid, Nodules, Differential Diagnosis, Dual-Energy CT, Iodine Concentration, Meta-Analysis

Ye, K. , Kuang, Y. , Liang, J. , Xu, X. , Shi, C. , Cheng, Q. , Jiang, Z. , Xiang, Z. and Luo, L. (2021) Diagnostic Value of Dual-Energy CT in Differentiating Malignant and Benign Thyroid Nodules: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Journal of Biosciences and Medicines, 9, 54-76. doi: 10.4236/jbm.2021.94005.