Identification of Risk Factors for Mastalgia and Its Relationship with Benign or Malignant Breast Diseases

Objectives: Mastalgia is a medical condition that primarily affects women of all age groups. Affected individuals experience excruciating pain, tightness, or a burning sensation in the breast tissue. The aim of this study is to observe the clinicopathologic features of women with mastalgia and compare these features with asymptomatic cases.
Methods: A total of 524 female patients who applied to the general surgery outpatient clinic were prospectively evaluated. The patients were divided into two groups. Group 1 (G1) included patients with mastalgia, while Group 2 (G2) included asymptomatic patients. The two groups were compared in terms of clinical, radiological, and pathological features.
Results: This study was conducted on 524 women, among whom the prevalence of mastalgia was found to be 61.45%. There were 322 patients in G1 and 202 patients in G2. The mean age was significantly higher in G2 compared to G1 (46.33±10.33 vs. 43.58±10.33, respectively; p=0.001). Premenopausal women rates for G1 and G2 were 73.91% and 59.4%, respectively (p=0.001). The regular exercise rate in G1 was 18.01%, while it was 25.74% in G2 (p=0.034). The past history of breast cancer rate was significantly higher in G2 than in G1 (p=0.015). The consumption of analgesics was significantly lower in G2 compared to G1 (p=0.05). Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs were the most commonly used analgesic drug class in both groups, with significant intergroup differences (G1: 27.63%, G2: 19.8%, p=0.043). Screening mammography with or without ultrasound examination was performed significantly more often in G2 compared to G1 (66.33% vs. 55.27% and 82.17% vs. 72.98%, p=0.012 and p=0.016, respectively). No significant difference was found concerning the frequency of benign or malignant pathologies between the groups. Conclusion: Breast pain is common and should be considered physiological without other breast symptoms and after excluding non-breast causes. It is safe to provide symptom control advice and reassurance to patients who have breast pain but do not have signs or symptoms indicating a possible serious underlying condition requiring further medical intervention.

Mastalji Risk Faktörlerinin Belirlenmesi ve Benign veya Malign Meme Hastalýklarý ile Ýliþkisi

Amaç: Mastalji, öncelikle tüm yaþ gruplarýndaki kadýnlarý etkileyen týbbi bir durumdur. Etkilenen bireyler, meme dokusunda dayanýlmaz bir aðrý, gerginlik veya yanma hissi yaþarlar. Bu çalýþmanýn amacý mastaljili kadýnlarýn klinikopatolojik özelliklerini incelemek ve bu özellikleri asemptomatik olgularla karþýlaþtýrmaktýr.
Yöntemler: Genel cerrahi polikliniðine baþvuran toplam 524 kadýn hasta prospektif olarak deðerlendirildi. Hastalar iki gruba ayrýldý. Grup 1'e (G1) mastaljisi olan hastalar, Grup 2'ye (G2) asemptomatik olan hastalar alýndý. Ýki grup klinik, radyolojik ve patolojik özellikler açýsýndan karþýlaþtýrýldý.
Bulgular: Bu araþtýrma mastalji prevalansýnýn %61.45 olduðu 524 kadýn üzerinde yapýlmýþtýr. G1'de 322 hasta, G2'de 202 hasta vardý. Ortalama yaþ G2'de G1'e göre anlamlý olarak daha yüksekti (sýrasýyla 46.33±10.33, 43.58±10.33; p=0.001). Premenopozal kadýn oranlarý G1 ve G2 için sýrasýyla %73.91 ve %59.4 idi (p=0.001). Düzenli egzersiz yapma oraný G1'de %18.01 iken G2'de %25.74 idi (p=0.034). Geçmiþ meme kanseri öyküsü G2'de G1'e göre anlamlý olarak yüksekti (p=0.015). Analjezik tüketimi G2'de G1'e göre anlamlý olarak düþüktü (p=0.05). Non-steroidal antiinflamatuar ilaçlar her iki grupta da gruplar arasý anlamlý farkla en sýk kullanýlan analjezik ilaç sýnýfýydý (G1: %27.63, G2: %19.8, p=0.043). Ultrason görüntülemesiyle birlikte olan veya olmayan tarama mamografisi G2'de G1'e göre anlamlý olarak daha sýk uygulandý (sýrasýyla %66.33'e karþý %55.27 ve %82.17'ye karþý %72.98, p=0.012 ve p=0.016). Gruplar arasýnda benign veya malign patolojilerin sýklýðý açýsýndan anlamlý bir fark bulunmadý.
Sonuç: Meme aðrýsý yaygýndýr ve diðer meme semptomlarý olmadan ve meme dýþý sebepler dýþlandýktan sonra fizyolojik olarak kabul edilmelidir. Meme aðrýsý olan ancak daha fazla týbbi inceleme gerektiren altta yatan olasý ciddi bir duruma iþaret eden belirti veya semptomlarý olmayan hastalara semptom kontrolü tavsiyesi ve güvence saðlamak güvenlidir. (SETB-2023-07-120)