An
increasing number of women in their late 30s and early 40s are presenting to me
with mastitis. Very often, these ladies have received treatment with no results
or have undergone abscess drainage following mastitis with recurrent symptoms.
One needs to
know what mastitis really means.
Mastitis
refers to any inflammation in the breast.
It is
generally unilateral and may or may not be associated with the typical signs
accompanying an inflammation, such as redness, fever or malaise.
Pain and swelling
are the only findings. Sometimes, a patient may have these symptoms occurring
insidiously over quite some time, with some relief after taking medicines.
Mastitis may
be infective (less common) or non infective (more common).
Infective
mastitis requires antibiotics and abscess drainage if there is pus formation.
If the pus
culture shows tuberculosis, then anti- tuberculosis therapy has to be started.
Newer tests,
like the Gene- expert test for tuberculosis is helping us in improving our
diagnostic capabilities.
In non
infective mastitis, a biopsy may be required along with the other
microbiological tests to rule out infective etiology.
Idiopathic
granulomatous mastitis (IGM)
This
difficult term is used to denote an even more difficult problem to treat.
IGM is a
diagnosis of exclusion, once we have ruled out all other causative factors.
The
diagnosis is solely based on the pathology findings which is similar to that
seen in tuberculosis, minus the hallmark findings of tuberculosis (caseation
necrosis and acid fast bacilli).
The
treatment of IGM is quite different as well. To simply put it, IGM is a
condition where there is chronic inflammation in the absence of an infective
agent, similar to some autoimmune diseases.
Treatment of
IGM consists of steroid administration, which may be prolonged.
In some
patients, surgery may be required, especially if there is abscess formation.
The
treatment is often long drawn and requires a lot of patience and compliance.
Inadequate treatment can often lead to recurrence, which may be even more
difficult to treat.
Dr Neemesh
Lodh is a breast cancer specialist in Dombivli, Thane.
For more
information visit: www.breastoncocare.com
Phone
no: 7507577546
Breast
Cancer Expert in Dombivli | Breast Cancer Surgeon in Dombivli | Breast Cancer
Surgery in Dombivli | Mastitis expert | Mastitis treatment | Breast cancer
doctor in dombivli | Breast Cancer Specialist in Dombivli | what is Mastitis |
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