Table 3.
Artifact types present across all images. The denominator for all percentages as 1297 images. Artifacts were further subdivided by whether they made the images uninterpretable or not. The sum of the values in the “Yes” and “No” columns add up to the values in the “All “ column.
| Variable | All | Still Interpretable | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
| |||
| Yes | No | ||
| Artifacts: Anatomy | 148 (11.4) | 139 (10.7) | 9 (0.7) |
|
| |||
| Trachea | 83 (6.4) | 74 (5.7) | 9 (0.7) |
| Common carotid artery pulsation | 47 (3.6) | 47 (3.6) | 0 (0.0) |
| Jugular vein | 6 (0.5) | 6 (0.5) | 0 (0.0) |
| Vertebral bodies | 21 (1.6) | 21 (1.6) | 0 (0.0) |
| Artifacts: Nodule characteristics | 215 (16.6) | 152 (11.7) | 63 (4.9) |
|
| |||
| Cyst | 121 (9.3) | 97 (7.5) | 24 (1.8) |
| Calcified shell | 7 (0.5) | 0 (0.0) | 7 (0.5) |
| Macrocalcifications | 37 (2.8) | 32 (2.5) | 5 (0.4) |
| Nodule too deep (>3 cm) | 52 (4.0) | 23 (1.8) | 29 (2.2) |
| Artifacts: Operator-dependent | 578 (44.6) | 475 (36.6) | 105 (8.1) |
|
| |||
| Compression | 473 (36.5) | 407 (31.4) | 66 (5.1) |
| Probe frequency too high (poor penetration) | 134 (10.3) | 91 (7.0) | 43 (3.3) |
| Blurring due to probe motion | 25 (1.9) | 14 (1.1) | 11 (0.8) |
| Lack of contact of probe with neck | 7 (0.5) | 6 (0.5) | 1 (0.1) |
| Artifacts: Lack of SWE signal* | 165 (12.7) | 74 (5.7) | 91 (7.0) |
|
| |||
| Noise (low SNR) | 17 (1.3) | 14 (1.1) | 3 (0.2) |
| Incomplete/weak signal in nodule | 140 (10.8) | 63 (4.9) | 77 (5.9) |
*
Artifact not explained by presence of any of the above anatomic, nodule or operator-dependent factors.