All About Breast Pain, The Causes, Symptoms, And Treatment

All About Breast Pain, The Causes, Symptoms, And Treatment

All about breast pain, the causes, symptoms, and treatment
As defined by the Breast Cancer Foundation, any pain or discomfort in the underarm or breast area is referred to as breast pain. Also known as mastalgia, breast pain includes breast tenderness, a dull ache, a burning sensation in the breast tissue, and heaviness or tightness.

According to a study conducted by the California Pacific Medical Centre, 50 to 70 % of women in the country have breast pain caused by various reasons.

What are the common breast pain causes?
There are multiple situations or states of the body that trigger breast pains. A few such key factors or causes of breast pain are these:

  • Breast cysts
  • Chest wall pain
  • Acid reflux
  • Fibromyalgia
  • Pulmonary embolism
  • Breast trauma
  • Breast cancer
  • Alcoholism with liver damage
  • Bornholm disease
  • Puberty
  • Pulmonary embolism
  • Rib fracture
  • Shingles
  • Shoulder pain
  • Sickle cell anemia
  • Trauma to the chest wall
  • Coronary artery disease
  • Angina
  • Herpes zoster
  • Anxiety, stress, and depression
  • Benign breast tumors
  • Breast cancer
  • Cervical and thoracic spondylosis
  • Costochondritis
  • Cyclical breast pain
  • Diet, especially high intake of caffeine
  • Breastfeeding-related infections
  • Mastitis
  • Medications such as methyldopa, oxymetholone, chlorpromazine, spironolactone, and digitalis
  • Peptic ulcer
  • Pericarditis
  • Pleurisy
  • Pregnancy

What are the types of breast pain?
Breast pain is categorized into two types:

Cyclical breast pains

  • Also known as cyclical mastalgia, this cyclical breast pain refers to the pain on the outer area of the breasts up to the armpits.
  • It is connected to the menstrual cycles of women and affects pre-menopausal women.
  • Cyclical breast pain is usually triggered two to three days prior to a period flow.

Non-cyclical breast pains

  • Non-cyclical mastalgia, or non-cyclical breast pain, is not influenced by menstrual cycles.
  • It is most commonly found among women aged between 40 and 50.
  • Along with breast tissue pain, non-cyclical breast pain expands to the chest, ligament, and the ribs.

What are the symptoms of cyclical breast pain?

  • Just like the menstrual cycles, the cyclical breast pain comes along with the menstrual periods.
  • It results in lumpy and swollen breasts.
  • Tender breasts is one of the prime characteristics of this type of breast pain.
  • Women feel burning, stabbing pain, a heaviness, and dull aches during cyclical breast pains.
  • Both breasts are affected, and the pain extends to the underarms.
  • This type of breast pain starts a few days prior to the menstrual periods and become intense during the first day of the menstrual periods.
  • It is most prevalent among younger women.

What are the symptoms of non-cyclical breast pain?

  • Single breasts are usually affected by non-cyclical breast pain.
  • It is triggered within a smaller section of the breast, and the pain gradually expands to the chest.
  • Non-cyclical breast pain is common among post-menopausal women.
  • Based on the specific cause, the pain can last for a shorter or longer duration.

What are the treatments for breast pain and its causes?

  • Cyclical breast pain can be treated with the help of OTC painkillers.
  • Breast pain causes can also be avoided by wearing rightly fitted clothes or loose clothes.
  • For clinically diagnosed breast pain causes, physicians provide specific medications based on the specific cause of breast pain.
  • Non-cyclical breast pain causes can be treated with various physical therapies.

When should one consult a physician?
One should visit a doctor immediately if they notice the following things:

  • A noticeable change in the way the nipples look
  • Breast skin is dimpling
  • Rashes being formed around the nipples
  • A noticeable change in the size of the breasts
  • Unnatural discharge from the breasts
  • Pain across the breasts and armpits at any time
  • A formation of lumps and swelling on the armpits

What are some of the self-help tips to avoid breast pain?

  • Wear a well-supported bra during the day and when sleeping at night.
  • Ensure to wear a sports bra during exercise.
  • Restrict the intake of coffee.
  • Quit smoking.

Today, breast pain is more common among the women of the country. Hence, it is suggested to see a doctor immediately in case of any discomfort.

Related Reading

Tips for Buying the Best Dog Food

Tips for Buying the Best Dog Food

Most of the dogs do not have a food fuss and may eat almost anything that you feed them. Dogs are not choosy at all when it comes to food and nutrition. Hence, it is important to make sure that the food that you are purchasing for your dog is healthy. The landscape of dog food has been developing by leaps and bounds in recent times. There is a wide variety of options to choose from in the online and offline market. Given the wide range of options that are available today, buying the best dog food might seem to be a confusing task indeed. All the commercial pet food that is available in the market today is regulated by the FDA. Therefore, most of the products do contain nutritious, healthy, and safe ingredients. But it does help to know certain basic factors you should look for while buying food for your dog. Prioritize on the nutritional guarantee The best dog food, which meets the dog’s needs adequately has a statement written on the label of the product, from the Association of American Feed Control Officials. Buy from some of the best dog food brands, such as Fromm Family Foods, Earthborn Holistic, Nature’s Variety Instinct, and The Honest Kitchen.
Different Types of Kitchen Cabinets Available for Your Home

Different Types of Kitchen Cabinets Available for Your Home

The most important aspect when designing your kitchen is deciding on the type of cabinets. In addition to functionality, kitchen cabinets score on aesthetics as well. Once the layout is planned, you can go ahead with choosing the cabinets. If you’re remodeling your home or just the kitchen, what you need to consider are the types of cabinets that furnish your kitchen. Here are a few types of kitchen cabinets that you can choose from. Base cabinets These kitchen cabinets are mounted on the floor and they are placed after checking out the floor plan. A major part of your job in the kitchen is on these base cabinets, which hold and support the countertops. These base cabinets are combined to carve out kitchen islands. A number of base cabinets are fused/set against one another and installed on site. The base cabinets, in addition to supporting the countertops, serve as drawers to hold your cutlery and appliances. Wall cabinets Mounted on the walls, these cabinets can store everything, right from your cookware to cookbooks. In terms of design, they offer utmost flexibility. Wall cabinet kitchen is available in varying heights, multiple widths, and custom depth options. This customization helps you to fit in your stuff of varying shapes and sizes into the wall cabinets.
How to Pick the Right Dog Food for a Sensitive Stomach

How to Pick the Right Dog Food for a Sensitive Stomach

In today’s world, where you are presented with over a dozen choices for every item you would purchase for your own kitchen, it is not surprising that you have an equal number of options for your dog’s food. However, choosing the perfect brand and formula for your dog out of a range of options in the market is not an easy job. Your pet depends on you and trusts you to make the right choice for them. Therefore, it is imperative that you do your research about the products available in the market, understand what your dog needs, know what might be your pet’s problems, and then make a sound decision. What is a sensitive stomach? Dogs are known to have voracious and large appetites. Keeping that in mind, it is normal to assume that they have strong stomachs. They can eat close to anything be it sweets, bakes, chewy gum, hard leather or even woolen socks for that matter! It always so happens that the strongest of them are prone to allergies and can develop a disorder which is medically translated as a sensitive stomach. This might be due to a sudden change in the food habits or even due an infection picked up from somewhere.
All You Need to Know about Cat Food

All You Need to Know about Cat Food

For cat owners, cat food is a hot topic. You need to think about it in different aspects. The best thing is to know which ingredients are good for cat food and which are harmful. If you are aware of this, you can get an idea about the quality of the cat food just by going through the label. It is always sensible to stick to one brand of cat food. However, you may also want to try and prepare cat food yourself. There are also various options for wet cat food as well. Cat’s love for fish is universal, so you can do without going for expensive cat food. Nevertheless, whether you buy it or prepare cat food at home, you need to ensure that the food contains enough nutrition and calories. You would need to have some idea about the ingredients that must be present in cat food and make a worthy selection for your cat. Basic ingredients present in good cat foods Cats need a variety of nutrients to stay healthy and active; they need various vitamins, minerals, fats, proteins, and oils. The following is a brief explanation of the basic ingredients that should be present in cat foods.