Suspicious Ultrasound Characteristics, IMC and Brafv600e mutation associated with central lymph node metastasis

From January 2016 to March 2018, we identified a cohort of patients with classic papillary thyroid carcinoma who underwent cervical US and were diagnosed by postoperative pathology. Fine-needle aspiration biopsies were analyzed for the presence of BRAFV600E, and immunohistochemistry was used to detect tumor markers. US imaging was performed in accordance with a standardized protocol. A model to determine the risk of central lymph node metastasis was established using the outcomes of univariate and multivariate analyses.