Inflammation of the mammary gland unrelated to lactation.
It can occur in both women and men, although it is more common in smokers, women with weakened immune systems (e.g., corticosteroid treatment, HIV infection), and women with diabetes.
Although it is often due to infection, it can also occur after an invasive procedure such as a breast biopsy.
It presents with pain, warmth, and redness of the skin in a localized area of the breast, usually near the nipple. It may be associated with discharge of pus through the nipple or fever.
Diagnosis is made by physical examination. Samples of the discharge may be taken for culture.
The cause is treated, usually with antibiotics, and the symptoms are relieved with the usual anti-inflammatory and analgesic medications. Surgical intervention may be required in cases of pus collections or abscesses, and/or in cases of fistulas when the pus collection communicates with the skin.
In cases of mastitis that do not improve with antibiotic treatment, it may be necessary to perform a biopsy to rule out some diseases that require more specific treatment, such as idiopathic granulomatous mastitis or inflammatory breast cancer. To prevent recurrence of non-puerperal mastitis, it is advisable to stop smoking.
- Dixon JM. Nonlactational mastitis. UpToDate, Jun 25, 2015.
- Dixon JM. Breast infection. In: ABC of Breast Diseases, Dixon JM (Ed), Blackwell Publishing, Oxford 2006. p.19.
- Dixon JM, Bundred NJ. Management of disorders of the ductal system and infections. In: Diseases of the Breast, Harris JR, Lippman ME, Morrow M, Osborne CK (Eds), Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Philadelphia 2004. p.47.
- Ammari FF, Yaghan RJ, Omari AK. Periductal mastitis. Clinical characteristics and outcome. Saudi Med J 2002; 23:819.
- Wilson JP, Massoll N, Marshall J, et al. Idiopathic granulomatous mastitis: in search of a therapeutic paradigm. Am Surg 2007; 73:798.
- Nonlactational mastitis in adults. J Michael Dixon, MDKenneth M Pariser, MD. UpToDate, last updates 21 Feb 2021.
