Ablation of cystic thyroid nodules with or without the injection of ethanol prior to aspiration: a one-year follow-up study

To evaluate the efficacy of ethanol ablation (EA) in treatment of cystic thyroid nodules (CTNs), according to procedure [with, contrariwise EA (contrEA), or without, classical (classEA), the injection of ethanol prior to aspiration] and injected ethanol amounts. We retrospectively reviewed consecutive patients treated with single-session EA for cytologically benign and symptomatic CTNs over four years. A total of 109 nodules were included [contrEA (n = 20) and classEA (n = 89)]. Twelve months after EA, median VRR was significantly higher in classEA group (93.1%) than contrEA (85.7%), while local symptoms did not significantly differ. Only the monolocular aspect of nodules could predict achievement of the three high efficacy outcomes (i.e., VRR > 75%, overall VAS score = 0, CS = 1), regardless of ethanol injected, EA procedure, nodule volume. EA, with or without the injection of ethanol prior to aspiration, is effective and positively influenced by the monolocular aspect of thyroid nodules, regardless of the EA procedure.