Joy M Justice, Janavi Sethurathnam, Nanda Nayak, Heidi Chen, Kalpnaben Patel, Sara Bartz, Christopher Baron, Barron Patterson, Ryan H Belcher
{"title":"Who Is Diagnosing Pediatric Thyroid Nodules? A Tertiary Children's Hospital Review.","authors":"Joy M Justice, Janavi Sethurathnam, Nanda Nayak, Heidi Chen, Kalpnaben Patel, Sara Bartz, Christopher Baron, Barron Patterson, Ryan H Belcher","doi":"10.1002/ohn.1232","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>The incidence of pediatric thyroid cancer has increased. Little is documented about which providers are diagnosing pediatric thyroid nodules and how this impacts care. Our objective was to analyze how nodules are identified and how diagnosing provider type impacts nodule size and management.</p><p><strong>Study design: </strong>Retrospective chart review.</p><p><strong>Setting: </strong>Tertiary care children's hospital.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Pediatric patients (aged 0-17) with at least one thyroid nodule diagnosed between 2006 and 2023 were reviewed. Diagnosing provider type, diagnostic method, nodule size, clinical management, and final diagnosis were analyzed.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The study included 351 patients. Primary care providers diagnosed the largest proportion of nodules (43.0%), followed by incidental nodules by radiologists (24.2%). The proportion diagnosed by radiologists increased from 12% to 31% after 2017 (P < .001). Primary care providers were more likely to use physical exam than pediatric endocrinologists (65% vs 42%, P = .004), who more often used ultrasound (56% vs 37%, P = .02). Primary care providers diagnosed nodules with a median diameter of 1.50 cm, larger than that of pediatric endocrinologists and radiologists, both 0.8 cm (P = .01, P < .001). Compared to patients diagnosed by radiologists, patients diagnosed by primary care providers more often underwent biopsy (P = .02) or surgery (P < .001) and received a malignant diagnosis (P = .001).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Primary care providers play a key role in detecting pediatric thyroid nodules, and a physical exam is vital in identifying significant pathology. Radiologic incidental nodules increased in frequency over our study timespan. Future research should consider the impact of socioeconomic status or geographic location on nodule size and management.</p>","PeriodicalId":19707,"journal":{"name":"Otolaryngology- Head and Neck Surgery","volume":" ","pages":"251-259"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6000,"publicationDate":"2025-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12207357/pdf/","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Otolaryngology- Head and Neck Surgery","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1002/ohn.1232","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"2025/3/19 0:00:00","PubModel":"Epub","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"OTORHINOLARYNGOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Objective: The incidence of pediatric thyroid cancer has increased. Little is documented about which providers are diagnosing pediatric thyroid nodules and how this impacts care. Our objective was to analyze how nodules are identified and how diagnosing provider type impacts nodule size and management.
Study design: Retrospective chart review.
Setting: Tertiary care children's hospital.
Methods: Pediatric patients (aged 0-17) with at least one thyroid nodule diagnosed between 2006 and 2023 were reviewed. Diagnosing provider type, diagnostic method, nodule size, clinical management, and final diagnosis were analyzed.
Results: The study included 351 patients. Primary care providers diagnosed the largest proportion of nodules (43.0%), followed by incidental nodules by radiologists (24.2%). The proportion diagnosed by radiologists increased from 12% to 31% after 2017 (P < .001). Primary care providers were more likely to use physical exam than pediatric endocrinologists (65% vs 42%, P = .004), who more often used ultrasound (56% vs 37%, P = .02). Primary care providers diagnosed nodules with a median diameter of 1.50 cm, larger than that of pediatric endocrinologists and radiologists, both 0.8 cm (P = .01, P < .001). Compared to patients diagnosed by radiologists, patients diagnosed by primary care providers more often underwent biopsy (P = .02) or surgery (P < .001) and received a malignant diagnosis (P = .001).
Conclusion: Primary care providers play a key role in detecting pediatric thyroid nodules, and a physical exam is vital in identifying significant pathology. Radiologic incidental nodules increased in frequency over our study timespan. Future research should consider the impact of socioeconomic status or geographic location on nodule size and management.
期刊介绍:
Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery (OTO-HNS) is the official peer-reviewed publication of the American Academy of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery Foundation. The mission of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery is to publish contemporary, ethical, clinically relevant information in otolaryngology, head and neck surgery (ear, nose, throat, head, and neck disorders) that can be used by otolaryngologists, clinicians, scientists, and specialists to improve patient care and public health.