Psychological impacts of thermal ablation and conventional thyroidectomy in BTN patients: a prospective observational study

Thermal ablation and conventional thyroidectomy are effective therapeutic methods for treating benign thyroid nodules (BTNs), but the psychological impacts of these methods in BTN patients are largely unknown. This survey study prospectively enrolled patients who were admitted to our hospital between July 2021 and July 2022. The four validated scales were applied to quantify psychological distress and sleep quality at five points (the day admitted to the hospital, the day discharged from the hospital, and 1, 3, and 6 months after treatment). Participants who were diagnosed with BTNs and completed the questionnaires were ultimately enrolled and divided into thermal ablation and conventional thyroidectomy groups. A propensity score matching (PSM) cohort was subsequently developed to evaluate longitudinal and cross-sectional changes in psychological-related indicators. Among 548 eligible BTN patients, 460 patients completed all the questionnaires throughout the follow-up (response rate: 83.94