Prevalence of Thyroid Nodules and Predictive Factors for their Malignancy: Is there any Correlation between Level of TSH and Type of Malignancy?: A Cross Sectional Study

Background: Thyroid nodule is a common finding of the endocrine system. Despite thyroid nodules in most cases being symptom-free and mostly benign, there are always malignancy risks. This study aimed to evaluate the frequency of types of thyroid nodules according to histopathology characteristics in Ahvaz hospitals. Materials and Methods: This retrospective cross-sectional study was performed on patients with thyroid nodules with histopathological diagnosis referred to the educational hospitals of Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences and private endocrine clinics in Ahvaz from 2018 to 2021. Demographic characteristics, clinical history, histopathological results, ultrasonographic findings, and the presence of lymphadenopathy were collected from the patient's medical records. Results: A total of 380 patients with thyroid nodules with a mean age of 41.2 +/- 12.28 years, 79.37% of whom were female were included in the study. A total of 267 (70/3%) cases were benign. Malignancy was found in 113 (29.7%) patients in which papillary thyroid cancer was the commonest histological diagnosis (n = 99; 87.61%). Age between 30 and 45 years (P = 0.001), bilateral involvement (P = 0.028), nodules size (P = 0.004), and lymph node involvement (P < 0.0001) were significantly associated with malignancy of thyroid nodules. However, there was no significant relationship between malignancy with gender (P = 0.450), BMI (P = 0.258), and history of head and neck radiotherapy (P = 0.200). There was no significant relationship between high thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) and the type of malignancy (P = 0.059). Conclusion: Malignant thyroid nodules were associated with factors including age between 30 and 40 years, bilateral nodules, and lymphadenopathy. Therefore, it is important to consider these risk factors in the management and risk assessment of thyroid nodules.