Fig.1.1. Echograms of the thyroid gland at normal (A) and at diffuse goiter (B, C). Schematic representations of the echograms. Pictograms. Horizontal line in pictogram shows the level of transverse section. Ultrasound evaluation of thyroid volume makes visible its considerable increase at goiter.



 
 
 
A
B
C

Fig.1.2. Histograms of the optical density of thyroid tissue - pixel analysis.
A - Normal. Optical density - 0.4355 ±0.1040(M±SD).
B - Diffuse goiter. Optical density - 0.4390 ± 0.1188(M ± SD).
C - Diffuse goiter. Optical density - 0.4693 ± 0.1528(M ± SD).



 

Fig.1.3. Thyroid gland, larynx, trachea. Reconstructed two-dimensional images. Anterior view, projection on the frontal plane.
A - Normal. B - Diffuse goiter.



 
 
Material

Ultrasound examinations of the thyroid gland - 150 000 persons (Regions of Kaluga, Tula, Bryansk, Oryol, Tambov, Smolensk, Kiev, Zhytomir, Chernigov, Gomel). 12-year follow-up examinations of the cohort - 2500 persons. Medical Radiological Reseach Center of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences (MRRC RAMS), Obninsk, Russia. Single ultrasound screening of the thyroid gland - 76 000 persons. Data base - 76 000 persons. Data base of ultrasound images of thyroid gland (on optical discs) - 22 000 images. Age of patients examined - 4-96 years. Sex - both sexes. References - from 1927 to 1999.
 

 

 

Methods
Ultrasound transverse tomograph examination - automatic. Anatomic and topographic visual evaluation of echo-grams. Evaluation of thyroid volume. Anthropometric information about the examined patients. Evaluation of optical thyroid tissue density - pixel analysis. Two-dimensional reconstruction of thyroid gland, trachea, esophagus, cricoid and thyroid cartilages, muscles of the neck. Clinical verification of the diagnosis.