Evidence map›Paper›PMID 25814656›Full record

ArticleAJNR. American journal of neuroradiology2015

Treatment of Benign Thyroid Nodules: Comparison of Surgery with Radiofrequency Ablation.

Y Che, S Jin, C Shi, L Wang, X Zhang, Y Li, J H Baek

Open access · hybridAbstract readComparative Study
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in AJNR. American journal of neuroradiology, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 90 papers, 10 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
90citing papers in PubMed, 10 pooled it
10.5field-weighted citation impact, top 1% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

90 citing papers in PubMed, 10 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 195 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Cost-Effectiveness of Radiofrequency Ablation for Benign Non-Functioning Thyroid Nodules: A Systematic Review.Clinical otolaryngology : official journal of ENT-UK ; official journal of Netherlands Society for Oto-Rhino-Laryngology & Cervico-Facial Surgery · 2026
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30 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Y CheFrom the Departments of Ultrasound (Y.C., L.W., X.Z.) yche1964@163.com radbaek@naver.com.
S JinLaparoscopic Surgery (S.J.).
C ShiPathology (C.S.), First Affiliated Hospital of Dalian Medical University, Dalian, China.
L WangFrom the Departments of Ultrasound (Y.C., L.W., X.Z.).
X ZhangFrom the Departments of Ultrasound (Y.C., L.W., X.Z.).
Y LiCollege of Basic Medical Sciences and Institute of Cancer Stem Cell (Y.L.), Dalian Medical University, Dalian, China.
J H BaekDepartment of Radiology and Research Institute of Radiology (J.H.B.), University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Asan Medical Center, Seoul, Korea yche1964@163.com radbaek@naver.com.
Asan Medical Center · KR

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

background and purposeNodular goiter is one of the most common benign lesions in thyroid nodule. The main treatment of the disease is still the traditional surgical resection, however there are many problems such as general anesthesia, surgical scar, postoperative thyroid or parathyroid function abnormalities, and high nodules recurrence rate in residual gland. The purpose of this study was to compare the efficacy, safety, and cost-effectiveness of 2 treatment methods, surgery and radiofrequency ablation, for the treatment of benign thyroid nodules. MATERIALS AND

methodsFrom May 2012 to September 2013, 200 patients with nodular goiters who underwent surgery (group A) and 200 patients treated by radiofrequency ablation (group B) were enrolled in this study. Inclusion criteria were the following: 1) cosmetic problem, 2) nodule-related symptoms, 3) hyperfunctioning nodules related to thyrotoxicosis, and 4) refusal of surgery (for group B). An internally cooled radiofrequency ablation system and an 18-ga internally cooled electrode were used. We compared the 2 groups in terms of efficacy, safety, and cost-effectiveness during a 1-year follow-up.

resultsAfter radiofrequency ablation, the nodule volume decreased significantly from 5.4 to 0.4 mL (P = .002) at the 12-month follow-up. The incidence of complications was significantly higher from surgery than from radiofrequency ablation (6.0% versus 1.0%, P = .002). Hypothyroidism was detected in 71.5% of patients after surgery but in none following radiofrequency ablation. The rate of residual nodules (11.9% versus 2.9%, P = .004) and hospitalization days was significantly greater after surgery (6.6 versus 2.1 days, P < .001), but the cost difference was not significant.

conclusionsSurgical resection and radiofrequency ablation are both effective treatments of nodular goiter. Compared with surgery, the advantages of radiofrequency ablation include fewer complications, preservation of thyroid function, and fewer hospitalization days. Therefore, radiofrequency ablation should be considered a first-line treatment for benign thyroid nodules.

Indexed as

ThyroidectomyAdultAgedCatheter AblationFemaleGoiterHumansMaleMiddle AgedPostoperative PeriodThyroid NoduleTreatment Outcome

Identifiers

PMID25814656
PMCPMC7965284
OpenAlexW2034580160

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.