Newswise — Falls Church, Virginia. July 1, 2014 – The American Thyroid Association (ATA) has launched its Thyroid Calculator mobile app as a free (limited time only) mobile app currently available from the Apple iTunes App store for use on the iPhone and iPad. The thyroid calculator combines three key thyroid assessment tools that medical, endocrinology, and thyroid professionals can use for rapid calculation of: Calcitonin and Carcinoembryonic Antigen (CEA) Doubling Time; Change in Thyroid Nodule Volume; and Thyroid Cancer Staging. Dr. Matthew Kim, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and recent Chair of Internet Communications, says "This is a well-designed resource that will definitely be useful to any provider managing patients with nodular thyroid disease and differentiated thyroid cancer."

Clinicians can enter values into the appropriate calculator to obtain instant results on present values, and they can enter values over time for comparative analyses. Calculation results are available for print or email but they are not preserved within the app, thus maintaining patient privacy and security.

Developed by Professor Guarionex Salivia, PhD, Minnesota State University, Mankato, the Thyroid Calculator mobile app utilizes calculations that are based on accepted medical standards and are well-recognized and accepted by thyroid physicians and researchers. The ATA extends its appreciation to Dr. Salivia for his dedication and efforts in producing the app for use by the thyroid community.

“The app will bring these calculators, which are highly useful in our daily thyroid practice, closer to the point of care, whether that be the physician office, the clinic corridor, or the hospital bedside. We are delighted to provide this tool which has been produced utilizing the expertise of our members and valued colleagues” said Dr. John C. Morris, Professor of Medicine at Mayo Clinic and the American Thyroid Association Secretary/Chief Operating Officer.

The ATA plans to release an Android version of the Thyroid Calculator mobile app later this summer and will be developing additional calculator components for a subsequent version of the app. Currently under consideration are: TNM staging of Medullary Thyroid Cancer, and Anaplastic Thyroid Cancer and Risk Group calculations for Differentiated Thyroid Cancer. The ATA Calculator is available in the U.S. for free for a limited time from the Apple iTunes App Store via iPhone or iPad or at https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ata-calculator/id890053714?ls=1&mt=8. ###

Disclaimer: The American Thyroid Association has posted thyroid nodule calculators to provide guidance and recommendations for particular practice areas concerning thyroid disease and thyroid cancer. The Calculators do not establish a standard of care and specific outcomes are not guaranteed.

Treatment decisions must be made based on the independent judgment of health care providers and each patient’s individual circumstances. A calculator is not intended to take the place of physician judgment in the diagnosis and treatment of particular patients. The ATA posts calculators based on the evidence available in the literature and the expert opinion of ATA members in the recent timeframe of the development of calculators.

Therefore, the American Thyroid Association considers adherence to these calculations to be voluntary, with the ultimate determination regarding their application to be made by the treating physician and health care professionals with the full consideration of the individual patient’s clinical history and physical status.

The American Thyroid Association® (ATA) is the leading worldwide organization dedicated to the advancement, understanding, prevention, diagnosis and treatment of thyroid disorders and thyroid cancer. ATA is an international individual membership organization with over 1,600 members from 43 countries around the world.

Celebrating its 91st anniversary, ATA delivers its mission through several key endeavors: the publication of highly regarded monthly journals, THYROID, Clinical Thyroidology®, VideoEndocrinology® and Clinical Thyroidology for the Public; annual scientific meetings; biennial clinical and research symposia; research grant programs for young investigators, support of online professional, public and patient educational programs; and the development of guidelines for clinical management of thyroid disease.

To find out more about the ATA and how you can support thyroid disease research, education and awareness, please visit www.thyroid.org.

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