Role of fine-needle aspiration cytology in evaluating thyroid nodules: A retrospective study from a tertiary care center of Western region,Saudi Arabia

Objectives:To evaluate the accuracy and efficacy of fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) in diagnosing thyroid nodules, correlating it with the histopathological findings.Methods:A retrospective evaluation of 314 patients was undertaken at a tertiary referral center of King Abdullah Medical City (KAMC), Makkah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, between 2010-2019. Patients who presented with thyroid swellings underwent ultrasonography and FNAC. If indicated, surgery was performed. The FNAC findings were compared to the final histopathological reports.Results:The findings for FNAC from our data set of 314 patients showed a sensitivity value of 79.8%, specificity of 82.1%, accuracy of 74.8%, positive predictive value of 74.8%, and negative predictive value of 85.9%.Conclusion:Our study showed that FNAC has high sensitivity and specificity in the initial evaluation of patients with thyroid nodules. When guided by ultrasonography, the accuracy can be markedly improved. Molecular markers once widely available can improve the diagnostic power of FNAC to be no less than the histopathologic evaluation of thyroid tissue.     

Development of mitral and tricuspid regurgitation in right ventricular apex versus right ventricular outflow tract pacing

Purpose

This study aimed at comparing the development of tricuspid and mitral regurgitation between the right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT) and right ventricular apex (RVA) pacing.

Methods

We prospectively enrolled 164 patients for permanent pacemaker implantation due to sick sinus syndrome or atrioventricular block and randomly divided them into two equal groups to receive either RVOT or RVA pacing. Patients with heart failure or valvular disease were excluded. The post-procedural echocardiographic evaluations were performed 1 year after the pre-procedural echocardiography, and the results were compared with respect to the development of mitral and tricuspid regurgitation and probable changes in the ejection fraction (EF).

Results

Age, gender, pacing mode, and baseline cardiac rhythm did not significantly differ between the RVOT and RVA pacing groups. The incidence of mitral regurgitation was significantly higher in the RVA group (p?=?0.03), but the incidence of tricuspid regurgitation was similar in both groups. There was a trend toward less tricuspid regurgitation in the RVOT group; however, it was not statistically significant. The mean EF was not significantly different between the study groups.

Conclusion

It seems that the incidence of mitral regurgitation in RVA pacing is significantly higher than that in RVOT pacing. The formation of tricuspid regurgitation needs to be discussed in the future.

Clinical trial registration number

IRCT201103146061N1     

Synthesis and anti‐inflammatory activity of diversified heterocyclic systems

In continuation with our research program on the development of novel bioactive molecules, we report herein the design and synthesis of a series of diversified heterocycles ( 4 – 22 ). The synthesized compounds were evaluated for their anti‐inflammatory activity. The chemical structures of the newly synthesized compounds have been confirmed by NMR, FTIR, and microanalysis.