Thyroid nodules in children

Kim, Su Yung

Abstract

30 cases of patients with nodule on the thyroid who visited Pediatric Clinic in PUN Hospital from Jan. 1985 till Dec. 1990 were studied and evaluated. All records of the patients were reviewed in regard to the physical examination, thyroid function test, radionuclide scanning, ultrasonogram and pathological findings of the tissues gained by fine needle aspiration or operation. The following results were obtained. 1) Patients with thyroid nodule occupied 7% of all of the goiters who visited the author's clinic during the same period. 2) Male to female ratio was 1:5 predominant in female children. But the ratio was 1:1 in cases of carcinonia. In age distribution, the older, the higher get the incidence. 3) The periods intervening between symptom onset and visiting our clinic were less than 3 months in most of cases. But in one third of the cases, they were neglected for over 1 year. 4) As cardinal symptoms and sings, neck masses were noticed in all of the cases. Easy fatigability, palpitation, sweating and dyspnea were complained of occasionally. 5) In radionuclide scanings, 27 cases had photon defects. All of the carcinoma cases had photon defects. 6) Malignancies were found in 13% of cases. All of malignancies were papillary carcinoma. 7) By palpation, 26 cascs were classified as single nodule, and 4 cases were classified as multiple nodules. But 4 cases among those classified as single nodule revealed multiple photon defect on radionuclide scanning. Because there is significantly high malignancy rate in thyroid nodules as our study showed, all of cases of thyroid nodules in children should be throughly investigated and treated at early stages.