Objective To compare blood flow velocity measurements obtained using two different color Doppler imaging(CDI)devices with linear probes of varying frequencies.Methods CDI measurements were performed in 99 eyes of 50 participants from Shenyang Aier Excellent Eye Hospital using two different CDI devices,Apogee Type3500 and Esaote MyLab 7 eHD.These measurements included peak systolic velocity(PSV),end-diastolic velocity(EDV),and resistance index(RI)of the ophthalmic artery(OA),central retinal artery(CRA),and short posterior ciliary arteries(SPCA).The differences in measurements between the two devices were analyzed using a paired t-test.The level of agreement between the two CDI devices was calculated using the Bland-Altman method,and the concordance correlation co-efficient(CCC)was calculated.Results There was a statistically significant difference between the two CDI devices in the PSV,EDV of the OA,CRA,and SPCA,and RI of the CRA and SPCA.The PSV and EDV of each vessel were higher in Apogee than in Esaote,and the RI of the CRA and SPCA were lower for Apogee than for Esaote(P＜0.05).The CCC demonstrated poor overall concordance ranging from 0.136 to 0.517.Conclusion The consistency of most measurements obtained from both devices is poor.CDI inter-device reproducibility is unreliable,even when the measurements are conducted consecutively by a single experienced ultrasonographer.

Objective To compare blood flow velocity measurements obtained using two different color Doppler imaging(CDI)devices with linear probes of varying frequencies.Methods CDI measurements were performed in 99 eyes of 50 participants from Shenyang Aier Excellent Eye Hospital using two different CDI devices,Apogee Type3500 and Esaote MyLab 7 eHD.These measurements included peak systolic velocity(PSV),end-diastolic velocity(EDV),and resistance index(RI)of the ophthalmic artery(OA),central retinal artery(CRA),and short posterior ciliary arteries(SPCA).The differences in measurements between the two devices were analyzed using a paired t-test.The level of agreement between the two CDI devices was calculated using the Bland-Altman method,and the concordance correlation co-efficient(CCC)was calculated.Results There was a statistically significant difference between the two CDI devices in the PSV,EDV of the OA,CRA,and SPCA,and RI of the CRA and SPCA.The PSV and EDV of each vessel were higher in Apogee than in Esaote,and the RI of the CRA and SPCA were lower for Apogee than for Esaote(P＜0.05).The CCC demonstrated poor overall concordance ranging from 0.136 to 0.517.Conclusion The consistency of most measurements obtained from both devices is poor.CDI inter-device reproducibility is unreliable,even when the measurements are conducted consecutively by a single experienced ultrasonographer.

Objective: To investigate the impact factors for central neck lymph node metastases(CLNM) of papillary thyroid carcinoma(PTC). Methods: A total of 498 patients with PTC who underwent total or hemi-thyroidectomy plus central neck lymph node dissection between January 2014 and July 2016 were included. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to identify clinicopathological characteristics, thyroid function parameters and US findings that associated with CLNM of PTC. A nomogram was developed to predict the probability of CLNM. The receiver operating characteristic curve(ROC) was used to estimate the efficiency of the nomogram. Results: Among 498 patients, 284 patients were affected by CNLM. The sensitivity and specificity of US in predicting PTC metastasis in the central neck were 31.3% and 88.3%, respectively. Univariate and multivariate analyses showed that gender, age, number and size of suspicious malignant nodules in thyroid, and suspicious lymph node metastasis detected by ultrasonography were independently correlated with CLNM. The ROC showed that the AUC was 0.748, with sensitivity of 80.8%, and specificity of 59.8%. Conclusions Gender, age, number and size of suspicious malignant nodules in thyroid, suspicious lymph node metastasis were predictive factors for CLNM in patients with PTC. The nomogram developed based on related factors with CLNM is more sensitive than sonographic central neck lymph node features in predicting the probability of CLNM.