Nipple pain can describe any discomfort in the nipple area of the breast. As a rule, its cause can be physical trauma or other influence on them, such as breastfeeding, exercise physical activity(eg running) without a sports bra, wearing the wrong size bra.
Nipple pain can also be caused by inflammatory diseases. For example, mastitis - inflammation of the ducts of the mammary gland, or abscess - accumulation of pus in the chest area. Such diseases are often common in breastfeeding women.
A rare type of cancer known as Paget's disease can cause inflammation and pain localized to the nipple area.
In each specific case it is necessary to install the real reason pain. Therefore, we will dwell in detail on each provoking factor.
Causes of nipple pain and action plan
Pain can be caused by friction and abrasions. That's why:
- When playing sports, wear sports underwear;
- Don't wear a bra that doesn't fit;
- Avoid cuts and abrasions in the nipple area. If this happens, use a patch.
Physical impact and changes in the breast. It can be:
- Breast surgery;
- Breast-feeding;
- Drying and cracking of the nipple or areola;
- Hormonal changes during menstrual cycle;
- Onset of puberty.
Diseases that cause pain:
- Breast abscess or Zusk's disease (abscesses around the nipple);
- Inflammation of the breast (mastitis);
- Contact dermatitis;
- Eczema;
- Galactocele (benign cystic tumor in the breast);
- Galactorrhea (spontaneous lactation).
Deadly diseases:
- Paget's disease.
Diagnosis of the causes of nipple pain
To establish the causes of pain, in any case, it is better to go to the clinic. A competent specialist always keeps ready a list of routine questions that can determine the cause of pain and prescribe the necessary treatment. Answer them yourself first:
- How long have you been in pain? When were they first noticed?
- Do pain symptoms occur simultaneously in other parts of the body?
- Is there any cyclical nature of symptoms? How often and with what frequency?
- Do you feel discomfort only in one breast or in two at the same time?
- Maybe your temperature rises and you feel chills at the same time?
- Is there any discharge from the nipples? Seals? Edema?
- Have you had any breast surgery? Were there any injuries in the chest area?
Possible complications
Complications from nipple pain are quite rare. Typically, routine nipple care consists of hygiene procedures to protect the body from the spread of infections. If you're a breastfeeding mom, you may benefit from breastfeeding more frequently, which helps milk move through your milk ducts more easily.
However, in some cases, immediate medical attention is actually required. Timely diagnosis and prescribed treatment reduces the risk of complications, including the spread of malignant or infectious diseases(abscess and sepsis).
Additionally, pay attention to such dangerous symptoms as:
- Bleeding from the nipples;
- Swelling of the breast;
- Change appearance breasts, such as shrinkage or looseness, changes in shape and size;
- Rashes, cracks and itching;
- The appearance of bruises in the chest area;
- Increased temperature;
- Nausea and vomiting.
In some cases, symptoms may indicate extremely serious illnesses. If you lose orientation even for a moment, fainting, or shortness of breath appear, call an ambulance immediately.
Often every woman noticed a painful, unpleasant sensation in the nipples of the mammary glands. The nature of the pain can vary from a slight tingling sensation, noticeable only when touched, to a sharp intense pain, sometimes radiating to the forearm, shoulder and shoulder blade. The reasons why nipples on a woman’s breasts hurt can be absolutely diverse, some of them are easily eliminated, others require timely intervention from a specialist and proper treatment. Let's try to find out and understand why girls' nipples hurt and how to deal with this disease.
Why do my nipples hurt?
The most common causes of discomfort in the nipple area:
Nipples hurt when feeding
Breastfeeding is moments of happiness that should bring joy to mother and baby. But, unfortunately, women often experience sore nipples during and after feeding, sometimes it can be too unbearable. There is an explanation for this. The most common reasons we will describe below.
- Incorrect attachment of the baby to the breast. The most common cause among young mothers, which can cause nipple pain. When feeding, you need to carefully monitor how the baby takes the breast; in addition to the nipple, he must also grasp the areola (nipple circle), the mouth must be well open, otherwise this process will cause discomfort to the mother, and the baby will remain dissatisfied. This is why you should avoid pacifiers and bottles while breastfeeding, as they are different from your mother's breasts.
- Damage and cracks of the nipples. Injury to the nipples occurs if the child cannot grasp the breast correctly, damaging it with his jaws. At the same time, mothers’ nipples hurt very much, bleed and become inflamed. Women may be hesitant to think about giving up breastfeeding. But you shouldn’t make such decisions, soon your nipples will become even coarser, and you and your baby will get used to feeding properly. If your nipples hurt after feeding, it is recommended to lubricate your nipples with your milk, and after feeding, treat them with wound-healing creams or oils.
- Stagnation breast milk(lactose). If the baby does not completely empty the breast, the milk accumulates and stagnates. The nipples and the entire breast hurt, and lumps form in it. The solution may be to put the baby to the breast frequently. If the child cannot cope or refuses, you will have to express milk yourself to prevent infection.
What to do if your nipples hurt
If you experience unexplained or uncharacteristic breast tenderness, you should consult a doctor to find out the cause. You can prevent nipple pain if you follow preventive measures:
- follow the rules of breast hygiene;
- do not use alcohol-based products or soaps for breast care;
- if your nipples hurt when touched, buy a comfortable, seamless bra so that it does not put pressure on your breasts;
- at breastfeeding wash your breasts before and after each feeding;
- use breast pads if a lot of milk leaks out to prevent the growth of bacteria;
- Do not give your baby pacifiers while breastfeeding.
Pain in the nipples may not always be a sign of a disease or pathology, but you should still listen to yourself more often and if you deviate from the usual norm, do not delay going to the doctor. Love yourself and be healthy!
Nipple pain is a symptom of many diseases. 6 out of 10 women experience this phenomenon. There are quite a few reasons why nipples hurt. Most often they are associated with hormonal changes in the body. Hormonal levels change during pregnancy, lactation, menopause and the premenstrual period.
In addition, pain is accompanied by various breast cysts and mastopathy. Pain may also occur when taking hormonal medications and antidepressants. Another cause of pain may be an incorrectly selected bra.
Let's look at the main diseases that cause nipple pain in women: what they are called, what other symptoms I have and how they need to be treated so that the pain in the nipple area stops.
This term refers to pain that appears a few days before the onset of menstruation. The pain is due to the fact that during this period the hormone progesterone increases in the blood, and when interacting with biologically active substances, it retains fluid throughout the body and, accordingly, in the mammary gland.
Because of this, the blood supply to the mammary gland increases, it increases in size, the nerve endings are affected - as a result, the woman’s nipples hurt, and in addition, pain can occur in other parts of the mammary gland.
With cyclic mastodynia, the nipples hurt in a special way: pain appears only when you touch the nipple. This condition is not a disease and goes away with the onset of menstruation.
Mastodynia does not require special treatment. These days, it is enough to wear a comfortable bra that will not put pressure on the nipples and, thereby, provoke pain.
Important: this diagnosis should only be made by a doctor! Making such a diagnosis on your own, which does not require treatment, can lead to the fact that some disease that you have not noticed can progress and lead to serious consequences for health and life! If your nipples hurt, don’t diagnose yourself - consult a mammologist!
Noncyclic mastalgia
With non-cyclic mastalgia, pain is not associated with hormonal changes in the body. Most often this is a sign of inflammation or neoplasm in the mammary gland. Pain may also occur when there is a malfunction nervous system and endocrine organs (pituitary gland, adrenal glands).
Another cause of nipple pain can be nervous tension, regular conflict situations, stress.
Mastopathy
Mastopathy is a benign disease that is characterized by the appearance of formations and lumps in the mammary gland.
Causes of the disease
The disease affects women from 18 to 45 years old. It is more common between 30 and 45 years old. The reason for this is hormonal imbalance, which occurs under the influence of unfavorable factors. There may also be increased production of prolactin. This hormone is produced during pregnancy and lactation to produce milk. But if it is produced outside of pregnancy, it will lead to mastopathy.
In addition to hormonal disorders, the causes of the disease can be:
- hereditary predisposition;
- frequent abortions;
- tumors of the uterus and ovaries;
- liver diseases;
- diseases of the thyroid gland and adrenal glands;
- frequent stress;
- irregular sex life;
- absence of pregnancy and childbirth before age 30;
- chest injuries;
- lack of iodine in the body;
- smoking and alcohol.
There are 2 types of mastopathy:
Nodular - a single compaction is detected in the gland. Depending on the structure of the compaction, nodular mastopathy can be in the form of a fibroadenoma or a cyst.
Diffuse mastopathy is characterized by the presence of multiple lumps in the mammary gland. They can also be in the form of a fibroadenoma or cyst. In addition, there is diffuse mastopathy of mixed form.
Symptoms:
The manifestation of symptoms in each woman depends on many factors: the type of mastopathy, concomitant diseases. Most often women are bothered by stupid people aching pain before menstruation. Due to swelling of the connective tissue of the mammary gland, it becomes enlarged and engorged. With multiple lumps in the chest, the pain becomes unbearable.
Sometimes there may be discharge from the breasts. The color will depend on the length of the process and may be clear, white or green. When bloody discharge from the chest you need to urgently seek help.
Treatment
Mastopathy can be treated conservatively and surgically.
Conservative treatment involves taking hormonal and non-hormonal medications.
Non-hormonal treatment:
- non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs;
- homeopathic medicines;
- vitamins;
- iodine preparations;
- painkillers;
- anti-inflammatory drugs.
Hormonal treatment:
Hormones are prescribed to correct hormonal imbalances.
- gestagens;
- prolactin secretion inhibitors;
- oral contraceptives.
Surgical treatment is prescribed for fibroids, rarely in the presence of a cyst, and also for breast cancer.
Pain in the nipples during pregnancy and breastfeeding
Chest pain can be attributed to one of the early signs pregnancy. The woman begins to produce the hormone prolactin, the blood supply to the breast increases and the growth of the mammary ducts increases. All this is the cause of pain. Fortunately, the pain goes away over time.
Pain during feeding occurs frequently. Young mothers do not position their baby correctly when feeding, and the baby may also have incorrect sucking technique due to the use of pacifiers.
In any case, if pain in the mammary gland occurs, it is better to consult a doctor and get qualified advice. You should not self-medicate, as this may worsen the course of the disease. Be healthy!
Pain in the nipples occurs from time to time in more than sixty percent of the female population of our country. As a rule, they arise as a result of cyclical changes in hormonal levels. However, often these days this symptom can be an alarm bell indicating the presence of a serious illness.
Causes of pain in the nipples.
To the question “Why do my nipples hurt?” It is impossible to give a definite answer, since the reasons may be different. In particular, the main factors influencing their occurrence are pregnancy and lactation, as well as premenstrual syndrome (PMS). Unpleasant painful sensations in the nipple area can be combined with general soreness of the mammary gland, and its intensity and nature can be different. In this case, the chest may be somewhat swollen, and pain may spread to the shoulder or back. It should also be noted that pain in the nipples can be a consequence of taking antidepressants, hormone therapy drugs, and can also occur against the background of mastopathy, cysts in the mammary gland and some other diseases.
Cyclic mastodynia.
From a medical point of view, the occurrence of pain in the nipples a few days before the onset of menstruation is called mastodynia. It must be said that this condition is familiar to almost every woman and it is associated with the menstrual cycle. This is due to the fact that before menstruation the level of the hormone progesterone in the blood increases, moreover, when combined with some biologically active substances, it can provoke the retention of excess fluid in the body, including in the mammary gland, as in this case. Against this background, due to increased blood flow, the breasts increase somewhat in volume, the nerve endings are affected, which cannot but affect the nipples, the sensitivity of which increases significantly and can even cause quite noticeable pain, and this is observed only at the time when you touch it . Fortunately, this phenomenon only lasts for five to seven days, and with the onset of menstruation it quickly passes (again, against the background of a decrease in hormone levels in the blood). Pain in the nipple area is not considered a deviation or anomaly, it is a natural process. Delayed menstruation can also trigger the appearance of this unpleasant symptom.
Noncyclic mastalgia.
Non-cyclic mastalgia or pain in the mammary gland is not similar to hormonal changes in the body. As a rule, the causes of their occurrence are neoplasms and inflammation in the mammary gland, malfunctions of the thyroid gland, pituitary gland, adrenal glands, various diseases of the liver, nervous system (in particular intercostal neuralgia, segmental pain, etc.).
Pain in the mammary gland and directly in the nipples can also be caused by psychological factors: these are regular conflict and stressful situations, negative emotions and so on.
Pain can also occur when taking hormonal contraceptives, and they are more pronounced. Such conditions may indicate the presence of hormonal imbalance. If such symptoms appear, you should consult your doctor; in most cases, the specialist will prescribe another drug. If mastopathy is suspected, the patient is prescribed an additional examination of the mammary glands using ultrasound, mammography, and the level of hormones in the blood is determined.
Pain in the nipples during pregnancy and breastfeeding.
It must be said that pain in the nipples is a common sign indicating the presence of pregnancy (but not 100%). The increasing volume of blood flowing to the breast, the proliferation of the mammary gland ducts (which occurs due to prolactin or the pregnancy hormone) do not always keep pace with the growth of nerve tissue, as a result of which constant tension in the nerve fibers occurs. Hence the pain, burning sensation and soreness when touching and rubbing against the tissue.
I hasten to reassure you, such painful sensations are observed only in early dates gestation of the fetus. Subsequently, a painful reaction of the nipples to external stimuli weakens or disappears altogether.
Breastfeeding is a rather difficult process for young mothers. Not all women do everything correctly right away, which is where nipple pain occurs. Well, first things first.
In general, breasts are a very sensitive area for women, and nipples even more so. The skin there is very delicate and thin, which is why painful sensations may appear in the first days of feeding the baby. Pain in the nipples and breasts during breastfeeding can be caused by incorrect positioning during this process, improper sucking, improper removal of the breast from the baby after finishing feeding, excessive dryness skin in the nipple area, improper care of the skin of the breast during lactation (complete absence or proper hygiene) and the appearance of cracks against this background. In addition, various cracks, injuries and other damage to the nipples can be some of the causes of such pain. In addition, the development of this unpleasant symptom can be facilitated by lactostasis and, as a result, incipient mastitis, wearing tight, incorrectly selected and poor-quality underwear, as well as damage to the nerve fibers directly in the nipple.
What to do if your nipples hurt?
Any measures to alleviate symptoms depend on the reasons contributing to its occurrence. During pregnancy, PMS and menstruation, try to touch areas that cause discomfort as little as possible, and also try to avoid pressure on the nipple area, for which purpose give preference to comfortable and high-quality underwear, preferably without seams. In addition, jewelry should be worn at a certain length so that it does not directly touch the painful area.
If pain is observed while feeding the baby, then it is important to maintain careful hygiene (wash your breasts before and after feeding warm water without soap, soften sea buckthorn oil, after feeding, wait a few minutes for the milk to dry on the skin of the breast), protect this area from mechanical damage, use special breast pads. It is very important to breastfeed correctly from the first days of a baby’s life. Teach your baby to suckle at the breast, fully grasping the areola and nipple. At the end of the feeding process, you do not need to immediately pull the breast out of the baby’s mouth, since at the reflex level he will squeeze it. Therefore, it is better to move the baby’s gums apart with a gentle movement of the little finger; he will easily and quickly release the breast.
When cracks appear, it is necessary to feed the baby with the other half of the breast, and lubricate the other with healing ointment, but in order to avoid a decrease or termination of lactation, milk should be constantly expressed.
If the pain in the nipples is painful, increasing and does not go away and is in no way related to the phases of the menstrual cycle, you should consult a doctor. You should also immediately seek help if, in addition to pain in the nipples, such manifestations as any discharge from the nipple outside of lactation are observed, if the nipple and areola have changed shape, color or size, if erosions, redness and swelling appear in painful areas, since all of this may signal breast cancer. The gynecologist will prescribe an examination, including ultrasound (ultrasound). If necessary, he may refer you for a mammogram. If diagnosis is difficult, a biopsy may be prescribed to check for the presence of cancer cells. And then everything will depend on the results. In any case, if you have the slightest doubt, contact a specialist, do not put it off until later. This may harm your health.
