Efficacy and safety of radiofrequency ablation for calcified benign thyroid nodules: results of over 5 years' follow-up

Table 3 Comparative results of macrocalcification subgroups

Variables	Strong group (n = 18)	Weak group (n = 12)	P value (2-tailed)
Age(years)	42.67 ± 10.68	45.08 ± 12.92	0.581
Sex (F/M)	13/5	8/4	1.000
Initial nodule volume(cm³)	5.70 ± 14.47	16.29 ± 34.61	0.459
Energy applied per volume (kJ/ml)	4.64 ± 5.93	3.28 ± 4.11	0.472
Vascularity	1.83 ± 0.92	2.50 ± 1.17	0.099
Location close to critical structure (Y/N)	6/12	6/6	0.458
VRR (%)
1 month	− 111.46 ± 123.44	− 154.94 ± 136.30	0.329
3 months	− 64.85 ± 218.10	28.68 ± 72.71	0.248
6 months	37.49 ± 155.30	57.99 ± 72.06	0.194
12 months	61.15 ± 48.36	83.98 ± 17.14	0.207
24 months	74.42 ± 33.79	88.26 ± 19.97	0.088
36 months	80.05 ± 28.67	94.88 ± 8.79	0.036^a
48 months	81.32 ± 24.52	95.44 ± 7.73	0.029^a
60 months	85.03 ± 19.52	94.73 ± 8.97	0.036^a

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