title: Papillary thyroid carcinoma manifested solely as microcalcifications on sonography.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study is to assess the utility of sonographic detection and the role of sonography-guided fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) in thyroid carcinomas that appear only as microcalcifications without an associated mass.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study covers 11 cases in which the only abnormal finding suggesting thyroid cancer was microcalcifications detected at sonography. All cases described were diagnosed as thyroid papillary carcinoma after surgery. Hence, it is shown that real-time high-resolution sonography is effective in the detection of thyroid carcinomas that appear as microcalcifications without an associated mass. The results of sonography-guided FNAB were satisfactory to diagnose these microcalcifications as thyroid carcinomas. Therefore, we believe that thyroid sonography combined with sonography-guided FNAB is a useful approach for diagnosing thyroid microcalcifications.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology and Research Institute of Radiological Science, Yonsei University College of Medicine, 134 Shinchon-Dong, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul 120-752, Korea.
authors.forename: Jin Young
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Kwak
authors.forename: Eun-Kyung
authors.initials: EK
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Eun Ju
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Son
authors.forename: Min Jung
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Ki Keun
authors.initials: KK
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.forename: Ji Young
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Kwang Il
authors.initials: KI
authors.lastname: Kim
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002114:Calcinosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology*; D002291:Carcinoma, Papillary / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology*; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D025321:Surgery, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods; D013964:Thyroid Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology*; D014463:Ultrasonography