Influence of Therapy with Iodine-131 on Thyroid Tissue Pattern in Colour and Power Doppler Sonography

AIM: The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of radioiodine therapy on sonographic thyroid patterns using power Doppler (PD) and colour Doppler (CD) sonography in hyperthyroid patients with autonomous nodules (AN) and Graves' disease (GD). METHOD: B-mode, colour, and power Doppler sonography,99m Tc scintigraphy, and laboratory analyses (free thyronine fT3, free thyroxine fT4, thyroid stimulating hormone TSH) were performed in 55 patients (AN=27, GD=28) before and 6 months following therapy with 131I radioiodine therapy (RIT). RESULTS: In patients with an AN (but not in GD), a significant reduction in thyroid vascularization was subjectively noted following radioiodine therapy on both CD and PD ultrasound (Wilcoxon matched pairs, P