title: Acoustic radiation force imaging of the thyroid-generation of reference values by Virtual Touch Imaging and Quantification.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate potential subject-related confounding factors for thyroid acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) elastography.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 194 subjects participated in the study.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The standard values in the right lobe were 2.52±0.35m/s (ventral half) and 2.43±0.40m/s (dorsal half). In the left lobe, velocities of 2.56±0.37m/s (ventral) and 2.48±0.42m/s (dorsal) were noted. A clear difference was observed between measurement values in the ventral and dorsal half (P<.0001). By contrast, none of the other factors exerted any effect on the measurements.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  ARFI-Virtual Touch Imaging and Quantification appears to be a suitable and relatively robust method for examining the thyroid gland.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine I, University Hospital Ulm, Albert-Einstein-Allee 23, 89081 Ulm, Germany. Electronic address: christine.neuwirt@uni-ulm.de.
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Neuwirt
authors.affiliation: FASCIA Research Group, Division of Neurophysiology, Albert-Einstein-Allee 11, 89081 Ulm, Germany. Electronic address: heike.jaeger@uni-ulm.de.
authors.forename: Heike
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Jaeger
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine I, University Hospital Ulm, Albert-Einstein-Allee 23, 89081 Ulm, Germany. Electronic address: wolfgang.kratzer@uniklinik-ulm.de.
authors.forename: Wolfgang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Kratzer
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine I, University Hospital Ulm, Albert-Einstein-Allee 23, 89081 Ulm, Germany. Electronic address: suemeyra.oeztuerk@uniklinik-ulm.de.
authors.forename: Suemeyra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tasdemir
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine I, University Hospital Ulm, Albert-Einstein-Allee 23, 89081 Ulm, Germany. Electronic address: mark.haenle@uniklinik-ulm.de.
authors.forename: Mark Martin
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Haenle
authors.affiliation: Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, University Hospital Ulm, Albert-Einstein-Allee 23, 89081 Ulm, Germany. Electronic address: tilmann.graeter@uniklinik-ulm.de.
authors.forename: Tilmann
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Graeter
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D054459:Elasticity Imaging Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012016:Reference Values; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013961:Thyroid Gland / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: ARFI–VTIQ; Reference value generation; Shear wave elastography; Thyroid gland