Efficacy of radiofrequency and laser thermal ablation in solving thyroid nodule‑related symptoms and cosmetic concerns
a systematic review and meta‑analysis
Informazioni aggiuntive
Autori
Cesareo R.,
Egiddi S.,
Naciu A. M.,
Tabacco G.,
Leoncini A.,
Napoli N.,
Palermo A.,
Trimboli P.
Tipo
Articolo pubblicato in rivista scientifica
Anno
2022
Lingua
Inglese
Sommario
Several studies have showed good/excellent results of thermal-ablation (TA) to reduce volume of benign thyroid nodule (TN). Nevertheless, no systematic review has reported information about clinical achievements with TA. Being the latter of high interest, this systematic review was undertaken to achieve high evidence about the efficacy of TA in reducing TN-related symptoms and cosmetic concerns. Radiofrequency (RFA) and laser (LA) therapies were considered. A comprehensive literature search of online databases was performed on January 2022 looking for studies reporting clinical results obtained by RFA or LA in terms of VAS (namely, Visual Analogic Scale) and cosmetic concerns. Initially, 318 records were found and 14 were finally included in the meta-analysis. VAS data were available in all RFA studies and the pooled mean reduction was of 3.09 points with significant heterogeneity. Cosmetic score data were available in 11 RFA studies and the pooled mean reduction was of 1.45 with significant heterogeneity. Regarding LA studies, 4 series reported VAS data and the pooled mean reduction was of 2.61 points with significant heterogeneity. The analysis of LA data about cosmetic concerns was not performed due to data paucity. Importantly, heterogeneities were not explained by meta-regression analyses using several covariates (i.e., baseline TN volume, follow-up duration, volume reduction rate). This systematic review showed that clinical data about TN TA efficacy are sparse and affected by high unexplained inconsistency. International societies should give indication about how we should clinically select and evaluate patients undergoing TN TA.
Parole chiave
Thermal ablation , Laser , Radiofrequency , Symptoms , Cosmetic , VAS , Review , Meta-analysis
Periodico
Reviews in endocrine and metabolic disorders
Volume
23
Pagine (o numero dell’articolo)
1051–1061
Diffusione
Licenza
CC BY
Visibilità
Pubblico
Status open access
Hybrid
