Table 5.
Diagnostic performance assessment of EU TIRADS in combination with qualitative grading and quantitative vascularity assessment in thyroid nodule risk-stratification.
| Nodules | Diagnostic Performance Measures |
GSU | GSU + Qualitative Vascularity |
GSU + Quantitative Vascularity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EU | EU + APDI_Qual | EU + APDI_RVI | ||
|
All
(n = 94) |
SEN (%) | 83.3 (65.3 ; 94.4) | 76.7 (57.7 ; 90.1) | 58.1 (39.1 ; 75.5) * |
| SPEC (%) | 50.0 (37.2 ; 62.8) | 84.4 (73.1 ; 92.2) *** | 81.0 (69.1 ; 89.8) *** | |
| PPV (%) | 43.9 (30.7 ; 57.6) | 69.7 (51.3 ; 84.4) | 60.0 (40.6 ; 77.3) | |
| NPV (%) | 86.5 (71.2 ; 95.5) | 88.5 (77.8 ; 95.3) | 79.7 (67.8 ; 88.7) | |
| AUROC | 0.67 (0.57 ; 0.76) | 0.81 (0.72 ; 0.89) * | 0.70 (0.60 ; 0.80) | |
|
Equivocal
(n = 40) |
SEN (%) | 88.9 (51.8 ; 99.7) | 88.9 (51.8 ; 99.7) | 66.7 (29.9 ; 92.5) |
| SPEC (%) | 38.7 (21.8 ; 57.8) | 77.4 (58.9 ; 90.4) *** | 74.2 (55.4 ; 88.1) *** | |
| PPV (%) | 29.6 (13.8 ; 50.2) | 53.3 (26.6 ; 78.7) | 42.9 (17.7 ; 71.1) | |
| NPV (%) | 92.3 (64.0 ; 99.8) | 96.0 (79.6 ; 99.9) | 88.5 (69.8 ; 97.6) | |
| AUROC | 0.62 (0.47; 0.78) | 0.83 (0.70; 0.96) *** | 0.70 (0.52; 0.89) |
SEN = sensitivity, SPEC = specificity, PPV = positive predictive value, NPV = negative predictive value, AUROC = area under the receiver operating characteristic curve, RVI = ratio vascularity index, GSU = grey scale ultrasound, EU = European TIRADS, APDI = AngioPLUS + power Doppler imaging, Qual = qualitative vascularity grading, * = p < 0.05 with reference to EU, *** = p < 0.001 with reference to EU.