Role of Nuclear Medicine in Diagnosing Different Patterns of Thyroid Abnormalities in Patients Referred for Thyroid Scintigraphy to Centre for Nuclear Medicine and Radiotherapy (CENAR) Quetta, Pakistan

Background: Nuclear Medicine has been playing a vital role in identifying different patterns of thyroid diseases for functional assessment using thyroid scintigraphy. Objective: This study aimed to diagnose different patterns of thyroid abnormalities using thyroid scintigraphy in our area for their proper management. Study Design: Retrospective study. Settings: study was conducted at the Centre for Nuclear Medicine and Radiotherapy (CENAR) Quetta, Pakistan. Duration: April 2023 and September 2023. Methods: The study population comprised 440 patients, with a mean age of 37± 13 years, who were referred to the CENAR Nuclear Medicine department for thyroid scintigraphy between April 2023 and September 2023. Of these, 357 (81.1%) were female and 83 (18.9%) were male. Results: According to study findings, the highest proportion, i.e., 59.1% (80.4% females and 19.6% males) of total patients, were reported between 21-40 years of age. Out of 440 patients, thyroid scintigraphy findings were normal in 4.5 % (20 patients) and abnormal in 95.5% (420 patients). The scan patterns included, functioning nodule 42 (9.6%), multinodular goiter 34 (7.7%), diffuse goiter 9 (2%), diffuse goiter with increased uptake (Grave’s disease) 145 (33%), multinodular goiter with dominant cold nodule 29 (6.6%), thyroiditis 25 (5.7%), cold nodule 83 (18.9%), extrathyroidal swelling 3 (0.7%), hot nodule 8 (1.8%), recurrent MNG 1 (0.2%), thyroid cancer post-surgical scans 41 (9.3%) and normal 20 (4.5%). Conclusion: This study concluded that radionuclide thyroid scintigraphy is complementary and offers data that can aid in the proper management of a range of thyroid-related disorders.