The Prevalence of Thyroid Nodules and an Analysis of Related Lifestyle Factors in Beijing Communities

作者：Hua Jiang, Yongfeng Tian, Wenhua Yan, Yue Kong, Haibin Wang, Anping Wang, Jingtao Dou, Ping Liang, Yiming Mu · 发表于：International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · 年份：2016 · DOI：10.3390/ijerph13040442 · 被引用次数：154 · 研究领域：Thyroid Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment、Thyroid Disorders and Treatments、Head and Neck Anomalies

Thyroid nodules (TNs) have annual increasing trends worldwide, and large-scale investigations on the prevalence of TNs in Beijing communities have not been conducted since the introduction of salt iodization in 1995. We performed a cross-sectional study to determine the prevalence of TNs, their epidemiological characteristics, and their correlation with lifestyle factors. A total of 6324 permanent residents aged 18 years or older (mean age, 52.15 ± 11.58 years) from seven representative communities in Beijing were included in the analyses. Once informed consent was obtained, the subjects were asked to complete questionnaires, a physical examination, and thyroid ultrasound. A total of 3100 cases had TNs. The overall prevalence rate was 49.0%, and the age-standardized prevalence was 40.1%, which increased significantly as age increased (p < 0.001). The prevalence was significantly higher in females compared to males (p < 0.001), and it was significantly higher among female current smokers and former smokers compared to non-smokers (p = 0.007). There was no correlation between alcohol consumption and TNs, and there were no significant differences in the prevalence among different groups of taste preference. The prevalence decreased with an increased frequency of seafood intake (p = 0.015) and with higher literacy levels (p < 0.001). The Cochran-Armitage trend test showed that the prevalence significantly increased with decreased physical labor and exercise intensity (p < 0.001, ...