Ultrasonographic estimation of Thyroid gland volume in healthy subjects of interior Sindh (Province of Pakistan).

Abstract

Ultrasonography is the most common & easy method to estimate the thyroid gland volume. There is wide variation in the volume of the thyroid gland in normal individuals of different ages, sex, races & geography location. Objectives: To estimate the ultrasonographic thyroid gland volume & its reference range in healthy volunteers of interior Sindh, province of Pakistan. Study Design: Cross Sectional Prospective study. Setting: Conducted in Department of Radiology of PUMHS Nawabshah. Period: From 15 August 2017 to 15 February 2018. Material & Methods: Total 102 healthy subjects were included. The subjects having history of any thyroid disease or surgery, systematic disease, iodine deficiency or taking any drug were excluded. Every subject’s thyroid ultrasound was performed by experienced radiologist & thyroid gland volume of each lobe was calculated. Results: The mean total thyroid gland volume of all study subjects was 9.14+2.97 cm3. The mean volume of right lobe is significantly larger than that of left lobe (5.27+3.82 vs 3.82+1.41, p< 0.005). The mean thyroid volume of the male subjects was larger than in the females (11.67+3.06 vs 8.50+2.87 cm3), the difference between both sexes was statistically significant (p< 0.005) (Table-I). There was no statistically correlation was found between thyroid gland volume with body mass index ((p< 0.005). Conclusion: We tried to contribute to establish the reference values for our local population and further large studies are required to establish national wide reference values of thyroid gland volume.