[The interpretation of 2015 American Thyroid Association management guidelines for adult patients with thyroid nodules and differentiated thyroid cancer].

The prevalence of thyroid nodules, especially differentiated thyroid cancer, has increased during the past decades. With the consideration of increasing prevalence of the diseases, American Thyroid Association (ATA) updated the guidelines for adult patients with thyroid nodules and differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) in 2015. The aim of the new guidelines was to minimize potential harm from overtreatment in majority of patients at low risk for diseasespecific mortality and morbidity while appropriately treat and monitor those patients at higher risk. The updates of contents in new ATA guidelines are interpreted in this article, including the contents about screening, diagnosis and treatment plan of nodules, initial surgical treatment of DTC, the evaluation and treatment of DTC after surgery, follow-up and diagnosis and treatment of recurrence, persistence, and distant metastasis of DTC.