Definition:
Mastalgia is breast pain and is generally classified as either cyclical (linked with menstrual periods) or noncyclic.
Diagnosis:
Some physicians have women chart their breast pain to find out if the pain is cyclical or not. After a few months, the association between the menstrual cycle and breast pain will emerge.
Treatment:
These may include: birth control pills; bromocriptine (which blocks prolactin in the hypothalamus); ganazol, a male hormone; thyroid hormones; and amoxifen®, an estrogen blocker.
Symptoms and Signs:
The most common type of breast pain is linked with the menstrual cycle and is nearly always hormonal. Some women start to have pain around the time of ovulation which continues until the beginning of their menstrual cycle. The pain can either be almost unnoticeable or so severe that the woman cannot wear tight-fitting clothing or tolerate close contact of any kind. The pain may be felt in only one breast or may be felt as a radiating sensation in the under-arm area.
Causes:
One study has suggests that some women with cyclical mastalgia have a decreased ratio of progesterone to estrogen in the second half of the menstrual cycle. Other studies have discovered that an abnormality in the hormone prolactin may affect breast pain. Hormones can also affect cyclical breast pain because of stress - breast pain can increase or change its pattern with the hormone changes that occur during times of stress.
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