Folić Nevena, Folić Marko, Milosavljević Miloš N, Pejčić Ana V, Janković Slobodan, Vulović Maja, Stepovic Milos, Mihajlović Isidora, Milosavljević Jovana
Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, 34000 Kragujevac, Serbia.
Pediatric Clinic, University Clinical Center Kragujevac, 34000 Kragujevac, Serbia.
Diagnostics (Basel). 2025 Aug 7;15(15):1980. doi: 10.3390/diagnostics15151980.
Ultrasound measurement of thyroid volume is not routinely performed in children without suspected thyroid disorders. However, pediatricians must be aware of the normal thyroid volume values in children in order to recognize and treat thyroid disorders in children on time. Therefore, this study aimed to explore factors that influence thyroid volume in children aged 4 to 18 years and to provide descriptive data on thyroid volume across this age range.
This was a prospective, non-interventional cross-sectional study conducted on a population of children aged 4 to 18 years without confirmed thyroid disorders. We used validated formulas for calculating thyroid volume that integrate the linear dimensions of this organ, such as length, width, and depth, as well as the appropriate correction factor. The Spearman or Pearson correlation coefficient was calculated to assess the relationship between total thyroid volume and various continuous variables, while multiple linear regression analysis was used to evaluate the effect of potential predictors on the total thyroid volume.
The study included 100 children, predominantly girls (75.0%). Significant positive correlations with thyroid volume were found for age, height, weight, body mass index (BMI), body surface area, serum creatinine, birthweight, and number of comorbidities, while calcitonin was negatively correlated with children's thyroid volume. We identified age, BMI, and serum creatinine as significant independent positive predictors of thyroid volume in children.
Age, BMI, and serum creatinine emerged as significant independent positive predictors of thyroid volume and should be considered when interpreting pediatric thyroid ultrasound measurements.
对于没有疑似甲状腺疾病的儿童，通常不会常规进行甲状腺体积的超声测量。然而，儿科医生必须了解儿童甲状腺体积的正常数值，以便及时识别和治疗儿童甲状腺疾病。因此，本研究旨在探讨影响4至18岁儿童甲状腺体积的因素，并提供该年龄范围内甲状腺体积的描述性数据。
这是一项针对4至18岁未确诊甲状腺疾病儿童群体的前瞻性、非干预性横断面研究。我们使用经过验证的公式来计算甲状腺体积，该公式整合了该器官的线性尺寸，如长度、宽度和深度，以及适当的校正因子。计算Spearman或Pearson相关系数以评估总甲状腺体积与各种连续变量之间的关系，同时使用多元线性回归分析来评估潜在预测因素对总甲状腺体积的影响。
该研究纳入了100名儿童，其中以女孩为主（75.0%）。发现年龄、身高、体重、体重指数（BMI）、体表面积、血清肌酐、出生体重和合并症数量与甲状腺体积呈显著正相关，而降钙素与儿童甲状腺体积呈负相关。我们确定年龄、BMI和血清肌酐是儿童甲状腺体积的显著独立正预测因素。
年龄、BMI和血清肌酐是甲状腺体积的显著独立正预测因素，在解释儿科甲状腺超声测量结果时应予以考虑。
