Feasibility and preliminary validation of an autonomous robotic ultrasound system for thyroid nodule screening: a pilot prospective study.

Authors

Jiakang Zhou, Shaozhang Xie, Wei Wang, Qinghua Huang, Xiaofeng Dong

Published in

Journal of medical ultrasonics (2001). Jul 04, 2026. Epub Jul 04, 2026.

Abstract

Thyroid nodules are highly prevalent in the general population, yet large-scale ultrasound screening is limited by its reliance on experienced sonographers. Autonomous robotic ultrasound systems have the potential to enable standardized thyroid screening with reduced operator dependency.
In this pilot prospective study, a fully autonomous robotic ultrasound system was evaluated for thyroid nodule screening in a clinical setting. Twenty-one consecutive participants underwent both autonomous robotic ultrasound and standard operator-performed ultrasound examinations in a randomized order. The primary outcome was participant-level thyroid nodule detection rate compared with operator-performed ultrasound. Secondary outcomes included feasibility, thyroid gland coverage, and participant-reported comfort.
Autonomous robotic ultrasound was successfully completed without human intervention in 20 of 21 participants (95.2%). Thyroid nodules were identified on operator-performed ultrasound in nine participants, of whom eight were correctly detected by the autonomous system, corresponding to a participant-level detection rate of 88.9%. Complete coverage of the left lobe, right lobe, and isthmus was achieved in 100%, 95%, and 80% of participants, respectively. Participant-reported comfort was neutral to positive, with a median Likert score of 3 (interquartile range, 3-4).
This pilot study demonstrated the feasibility of fully autonomous robotic ultrasound for standardized thyroid nodule screening. The system achieved high completion rates and acceptable screening performance in a controlled clinical setting, supporting further validation in larger and more diverse populations.

PMID:
42401697
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 05 Jul 2026.

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