RESULTS Reassurance plus bra-fitting advice provides relief for most women .
There is some benefit in reducing dietary coffee and fat intake .
Dopamine agonists are useful , but less effective than endocrine treatments such as Danazol or Tamoxifen .
Of the Selective Oestrogen Receptor Modulator drugs , Ormeloxifene appears most effective , but is not licenced in the United Kingdom .
Relaxation therapy , acupuncture and kinesiology may be useful but currently lack good evidence of effectiveness .
Subsequent drug therapy should be balanced against its side-effects ; topical NSAIDs and Ormeloxifene show greatest benefit with least side-effects .
INTRODUCTION Idiopathic mastalgia ( benign breast pain of unknown origin ) is often poorly managed because of its subjective nature and unclear aetiology .
Mastalgia is a reason for up to 50 % of breast outpatient referrals .
Existing systematic review s discuss date d treatment options that provide limited symptomatic relief .
Sports Brassiere: Is It a Solution for Mastalgia?
Breast pain is a very common complaint in women presenting to the outpatient department . It causes a certain degree of discomfort , anxiety leading to repeated investigations , and to some degree disturbs their lifestyle . This prospect i ve study was carried out at King Fahd Hospital of the University , Alkhobar . Two hundred women presenting to the outpatient surgical department with mastalgia were included ; 100 women received treatment with danazole , and the other 100 were asked to wear sports brassieres for 12 weeks . They were requested to answer a structured question naire during the specified period , and an extensive review of the literature was also performed . Patients were compliant with the instructions . The first group had 58 % relief of symptoms , but 42 % experienced drug side effects ; in the second group , all participants had some degree of initial discomfort followed by relief of symptoms in 85 % of cases . Most patients cl aim ed that their lifestyle had changed dramatically after using the sports brassieres . Mastalgia is a common disease that may run a chronic course . Many patients are unsatisfied with prescribed medications and tend to discontinue treatment when side effects develop . Active breast movement on its weak suspensory ligaments may contribute considerably to mastalgia . Good external support by sports brassieres can relieve most of the patient 's symptoms
RESULTS Reassurance plus bra-fitting advice provides relief for most women .
There is some benefit in reducing dietary coffee and fat intake .
Dopamine agonists are useful , but less effective than endocrine treatments such as Danazol or Tamoxifen .
Of the Selective Oestrogen Receptor Modulator drugs , Ormeloxifene appears most effective , but is not licenced in the United Kingdom .
Relaxation therapy , acupuncture and kinesiology may be useful but currently lack good evidence of effectiveness .
Subsequent drug therapy should be balanced against its side-effects ; topical NSAIDs and Ormeloxifene show greatest benefit with least side-effects .
INTRODUCTION Idiopathic mastalgia ( benign breast pain of unknown origin ) is often poorly managed because of its subjective nature and unclear aetiology .
Mastalgia is a reason for up to 50 % of breast outpatient referrals .
Existing systematic review s discuss date d treatment options that provide limited symptomatic relief .