An Ultrasonogram Reporting System for Thyroid Nodules Stratifying Cancer Risk for Clinical Management

Our objective was to develop a standardized US characterization and reporting data system of thyroid lesions for clinical management: the Thyroid Imaging Reporting and Data System (TIRADS).

This was a prospective study using the TIRADS, which is based on the concepts of the Breast Imaging Reporting Data System of the American College of Radiology. MATERIALS: A correlation of the US findings and fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) results in 1959 lesions biopsied under US guidance and studied histologically during an 8-yr period was divided into three stages. In the first stage, 10 US patterns were defined. In the second stage, four TIRADS groups were defined according to risk. The percentages of malignancy defined in the Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System were followed: TIRADS 2 (0% malignancy), TIRADS 3 (80% malignancy).