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. 2015 Mar;4(1):55-61.
doi: 10.1159/000371346. Epub 2015 Feb 26.

Thyroid volume and its relation to anthropometric measures in a healthy cuban population

Silvia Turcios  1 , Juan J Lence-Anta  2 , Jose-Luis Santana  2 , Celia M Pereda  2 , Milagros Velasco  2 , Mae Chappe  2 , Idalmis Infante  3 , Marlene Bustillo  2 , Anabel García  2 , Enora Clero  4 , Stephane Maillard  4 , Regla Rodriguez  3 , Constance Xhaard  4 , Yan Ren  4 , Carole Rubino  4 , Rosa M Ortiz  2 , Florent de Vathaire  4
Affiliations

Thyroid volume and its relation to anthropometric measures in a healthy cuban population

Silvia Turcios et al. Eur Thyroid J. 2015 Mar.

Abstract

Objectives: The aim of this study was to describe the thyroid volume in healthy adults by ultrasound and to correlate this volume with some anthropometric measures and other differentiated thyroid cancer risk factors.

Study design: Thyroid volume and anthropometric measures were recorded in a sample of 100 healthy adults, including 21 men and 79 women aged 18-50 years, living in a non-iodine-deficient area of Havana city.

Results: The average thyroid volume was 6.6 ± 0.26 ml; it was higher in men (7.3 ml) than in women (6.4 ml; p = 0.15). In the univariate analysis, thyroid volume was correlated with all anthropometric measures, but in the multivariate analysis, body surface area was found to be the only significant anthropometric parameter. Thyroid volume was also higher in current or former smokers and in persons with blood group AB or B.

Conclusion: Specific reference values of thyroid volume as a function of body surface area could be used for evaluating thyroid volume in clinical practice. The relation between body surface area and thyroid volume is coherent with what is known about the relation of thyroid volume to thyroid cancer risk, but the same is not true about the relation between thyroid volume and smoking habit.

Keywords: Case-control study; Thyroid cancer risk factors; Thyroid volume; Ultrasound.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Thyroid volume as a function of BSA.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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