Change of mammary glands with menopause: pain, swelling, burning, tightening, tingling

Among the signs of that restructuring of the female body, which occurs with the onset of menopause, is also the change in the mammary glands with menopause. It is almost inevitable, because at the end of the reproductive period, the production of sex hormones in women naturally decreases.

However, it should be borne in mind that a change in the mammary glands with menopause may be pathological.

[1], [2]

Causes of the changes in mammary glands with menopause

The condition of the mammary glands is caused not only by sex steroids - estrogen, estradiol, progesterone and prolactin, but also by pituitary hormones - which affects the synthesis of estrogen by follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and lutropin (LH), which stimulates the production of progesterone. But the estrogen and progesterone produced in the ovaries, which regulate and control the reproductive cycle of women, continue to play a key role during menopause.

And the main causes of changes in the mammary glands in menopause are a sharp decrease in the level of estrogen, due to the extinction of the functions of the ovaries. This causes many symptoms associated with menopause, as the stimulating effect of this sex steroid on the metabolism of the whole body tissues, including breast tissue, is reduced.

The etiology of changes in the breast during menopause, which are physiologically normal, is due to atrophy of the glandular tissue of the mammary glands and their secretory lobuloalveolar structures. In the course of the natural process - involution of the mammary glands - there is a fibrous-fat transformation of tissues: the volume of glandular tissue is gradually reduced, and the connective tissue capsules are filled with fatty tissue.

In addition, due to the decrease in estrogen, the connective tissues of the breast stroma lose elasticity and become thicker, approaching the structure of a denser fibrous tissue.

By the way, if you take hormones to alleviate climacteric syndrome, the mammary glands can become denser: synthetic progesterone analogs, like endogenous hormones, promote the proliferation of cells in the breast tissue. But this can lead to serious problems and the development of pathology.

The pathological changes in the mammary glands with menopause in most cases are also associated with hormonal factors. And the pathogenesis of such changes is explained by constant fluctuations between estrogen and progesterone. The fact is that in response to a decrease in the level of estrogen (to help compensate for its deficiency), the adrenal glands begin to synthesize more androstenedione (the precursor of testosterone). By cells of adipose tissue, it is transformed into estrone, to which the estrogen receptors of the mammary gland tissues are sensitive. At the same time, progesterone continues to be produced by the adrenal cortex, and if it "outweighs", fluid retention in the body and in the tissues of the mammary glands occurs, causing mastodynia-discomfort, swelling of the mammary glands, feeling of heaviness and even pain in the mammary glands with menopause.

And when the level of estrogen is higher, the available progesterone is not enough to reduce the reaction of estrogen receptors in the tissues of the mammary glands. And then the processes of proliferation of connective tissue cells are activated, because of which fibro-mastopathy can develop in menopause.

Women aged enough often find a tightening in the mammary gland with menopause (and sometimes not single) - a sign of fibrotic changes in the mammary glands, for example, fibroadenomas. With the expansion of interlobular milk ducts, associated with fibrosis of their walls and the formation of cysts, there is fibrocystic mastopathy.

To fatty hypertrophy of the mammary glands can lead to excessive growth of fatty tissue, and localized enhanced division of fat cells - to lipoma (benign breast tumor).

If the minor tenderness in the chest at the beginning of menopause is temporary and, as noted by mammology, passes naturally, the more intense and prolonged pain sensations, as well as the swelling of mammary glands with secretions from the nipple, should alert the woman, as the breast condition in menopause differs unpredictability.

[3], [4], [5], [6]

Symptoms of the changes in mammary glands with menopause

The first signs of involutionary processes in the tissues of the mammary glands are manifested by a change in their size and some morbidity (which was mentioned above). In this case, breast enlargement in some women is associated with increased progesterone, which stimulates the formation of adipose tissue in the mammary glands. At the same time, any changes in the estrogen-progesterone ratio become a trigger for the so-called involuntary fibrosis, in which the adipose tissue in the breast is replaced by the connective tissue.

In women with normal weight and close to normal levels of progesterone, the accumulation of adipose tissue in the breast instead of glandular does not occur, and their breasts become smaller. But in both situations, the loss of glandular tissue with time leads to a decrease in mammary glands. And in combination with a decreased elasticity of connective tissue, this is expressed in the fact that the glands lose their shape and sag.

There are also general symptoms of mammary gland changes in menopause, such as:

• mixing nipples from the center to the side;
• darkening of areoles, on which hairs may appear;
• striated atrophodermia of the skin and subcutaneous tissue of the breast (stretch marks);
• expansion of the space between the glands.

If fibromastopathy develops with menopause, the pathological changes in the mammary glands are often detected accidentally, especially if the formations are small. Among the symptoms of fibrotic neoplasia, experts note the same focal or diffuse compaction in the mammary gland with menopause and mastodynia; possible hyperemia of a particular area of the skin or the appearance of a capillary mesh, it is possible to increase the lymph nodes in the axillary region.

Many pathological changes in the mammary glands in women during menopause can be considered as consequences of their involution, which had certain complications, for example, excessive accumulation of adipose tissue in the mammary glands. Of all the phases of development of mammary glands, involution is considered to be the least studied and most conducive manifestation of pathologies of the female reproductive system.

[7], [8], [9], [10]

Diagnostics of the changes in mammary glands with menopause

Diagnosis of changes in the mammary glands begins with a climax with medical examination: for a doctor, age-related breast changes are obvious, but palpation is mandatory.

If mammalogist or gynecologist did not see anything suspicious and did not find, then analyzes are not needed. But to confirm the absence of pathologies, an x-ray examination is carried out-mammography.

In case of densification in the mammary gland with menopause or other manifestly pathological symptoms, a blood test (total and hormones) is given; instrumental diagnostics is used (X-ray, ultrasound, doppler sonography, CT, CT); a biopsy (to determine the purity of the lesions in the chest).

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Differential diagnosis

Differential diagnosis should distinguish between the physiological changes in the mammary glands during the menopause from their spontaneous atrophy during hyperandrogenism, polycystic ovarian syndrome, after treatment of breast cancer with antiestrogens, and also because of large weight loss, for example, in eating disorders.

Treatment of the changes in mammary glands with menopause

The natural age involution of the mammary glands is not a disease, therefore, there is no treatment for changes in the mammary glands with menopause.

And when a woman turns to a doctor with this problem, she will be recommended to take vitamins A, C and E - as antioxidants that support normal metabolism. And to reduce the appearing on the chest stria, you can try to use the cream from stretch marks.

True, if breast changes cause a woman's discomfort, surgery may be considered, but this is not surgical treatment, but cosmetic mammoplasty, which corrects the shape of the mammary glands and the location of the nipples.

And medicines are used in the therapy of diseases. In particular, if fibromastopathy is diagnosed with menopause, Danazol, Diferelin, Letrozole (Femara) can be prescribed; Gomepatiya pre-esteem Mastodinon or its analogue Cyclodinone.

More information on the treatment of these pathologies of the mammary glands (drugs, the way they are used and doses, contraindications and side effects) is presented in the publications - Education in the Breast, Fibroadenoma of the Breast, as well as Mastopathy with menopause

And alternative treatment and treatment with herbs is described in detail in the material - Treatment of mastopathy by alternative means

Prevention

Prevention, that is, prevention of age-related changes occurring in the mammary glands due to natural aging, is not yet possible. Although there are creams with collagen or cocoa butter, which help reduce the flabbiness of the skin of the breast, but they can not slow down the process.

A prophylaxis of mammalian breast pathologies is considered their regular self-examination, as well as a visit to the doctor and the passage of mammography.

[14], [15], [16]

Forecast

As it was sung in the famous song, "life can not be turned back" ... This is applied to the forecast of physiologically determined age changes of the mammary glands with menopause.

A pathological change can develop in different ways and often enough in the direction of oncology. Therefore, the prognosis for fibro-mastopathy in menopause depends on many factors, including hereditary. According to European oncologists, menopausal women account for about half of all diagnosed cases of breast cancer.

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