Green nipples discharge is the appearance of a thick green secretion, which can be unilateral and bilateral. The symptom is often accompanied by uncomfortable sensations and pulling pains in the mammary glands, compaction in the areola area. The greenish discharge from the nipple is characteristic of cystic mastopathy, similar discharge is observed in ectasia of the milk ducts and other breast diseases. To determine the cause, mammography, biopsy with cytological examination, ultrasound are prescribed. To eliminate the symptom, complex therapy of the underlying pathology is necessary.
Causes of green nipples discharge
Mastopathy
This benign disease of the mammary glands causes green discharge in 95% of cases of violation. Patients note the connection of the symptom with menstruation — a few days before the expected menstruation, droplets of yellow-green or dark green secretions appear on the nipples. The amount of pathological discharge increases with light pressure on the mammary gland. With mastopathy, the breast swells strongly, the skin becomes edematous. Most women have a combination of green secretions and quite intense pain in the glands, which increases when wearing a bra.
Some patients trace the relationship between the appearance of green droplets on the nipples and irregular sexual life, prolonged stress, depressive states. The symptom can occur with any type of mastopathy, but most often occurs with a cystic form characterized by the formation of cavities in the affected glands. The green hue of the secretions is due to the prolonged stagnation of the secret, which normally has a white color and is produced in small quantities. Fibrous growths in the alveolar tissue and milk ducts contribute to stagnation.
Ectasia of the milky ducts
Normally, the ducts of the mammary glands expand during pregnancy and lactation, ectasia, formed in women after 40-45 years, has a pathological character. The release of greenish fluid from the nipples occurs after pressure on the areoles of the affected glands. At the beginning of the disease, against the background of discomfort in the chest, the patient notices several drops of a whitish secretion, as the condition progresses, the contents of the milky passages acquire a dark green color, become very thick. Ectasia of the ducts and greenish discharge from the nipples are accompanied by:
- Diseases of the genital organs: endometriosis, adnexitis, oophoritis.
- Prolactin-secreting tumors of the pituitary gland.
- Mechanical effects on the mammary glands: bruises, injuries during surgical interventions.
Rare reasons
- Breast cancer: adenocarcinoma, Paget’s disease.
- Secondary hyperprolactinemia: hypothyroidism, insufficiency of the adrenal cortex, hyperestrogenism.
- Intra-current papillomatosis.
Diagnostics
Examination of patients who periodically have green discharge from the mammary glands is carried out by a specialist mammologist. At the initial stage, diagnostic search involves the use of instrumental studies aimed at detecting structural changes in glandular tissue. To clarify the nature of the pathological process, highly specific laboratory techniques are prescribed. The most informative are:
- Radiological methods. Visualization of the structure of the breast during mammography allows you to detect deformations of glandular tissue, timely identify bulky formations and cysts. For a full-fledged study of the condition of the milky ducts, the technique is supplemented by contrast ductography.
- Sonography. Ultrasound examination is shown as a non-invasive screening method to clarify the root cause of green nipples discharge. Ultrasound of the breast is mainly used in young women with dense alveolar tissue, during the examination of which mammography is not informative enough.
- Cytomorphological examination. To exclude the oncological origin of green secretions, the discharge is collected, a tissue biopsy is performed, followed by histological and cytological analysis of the material from suspicious foci detected during mammography. More often, the fine-needle biopsy method is used under ultrasound control, less often – trepan biopsy.
- Blood tests. Determination of specific cancer markers in blood plasma is prescribed in the presence of suspicious nodular formations in the breast. An informative modern method of assessing the risk of malignant neoplasia is considered to be a genetic analysis aimed at detecting the BRCA gene.
All patients are recommended to undergo a comprehensive gynecological examination, since diseases of the mammary glands are often combined with disorders of the reproductive system. The concentration of estrogens and progesterone in the blood is assessed on different days of the menstrual cycle, with possible endocrine pathology, the levels of thyroid and adrenal hormones are measured.
Treatment
Help before diagnosis
Green nipples discharge indicates a serious illness, so self-medication in such a situation is unacceptable. A woman needs to contact a mammologist as soon as possible for a detailed examination and exclusion of tumor processes. It is advisable for patients to avoid prolonged exposure to the sun, it is forbidden to visit tanning salons and laser hair removal. Before establishing a clinical diagnosis, the doctor may prescribe analgesics to relieve severe pain in the mammary glands.
Conservative therapy
Medical treatment of diseases that provoked the appearance of green nipples discharge is carried out both in isolation and in combination with surgical interventions. Physiotherapy methods are contraindicated. Medical tactics depend on the degree of structural changes in the mammary gland, hormonal background and the presence of extragenital pathology. The following groups of medicines are most effective:
- Hormonal drugs. Combined oral contraceptives help to normalize the levels of sex hormones and prevent sudden spikes in estrogen. In order to reduce the growth of connective tissue in mastopathy, topical medications with progesterone are used.
- Anti-inflammatory. Most often, medications from the NSAID group are used, which quickly reduce the level of inflammatory mediators, eliminate local symptoms — redness, swelling of the affected gland. These medicines also have an analgesic effect.
- Vitamins and antioxidants. The drugs are prescribed in order to strengthen the body, increase immunity and create favorable conditions for the treatment of diseases accompanied by greenish discharge from the nipples. Sometimes herbal or synthetic immunostimulants are included in the therapy regimen.
Surgical treatment
If the presence of green discharge is combined with pronounced breast deformity due to ductectasia or fibrocystic changes, surgical intervention is the method of choice. With limited expansion of the milky ducts, they are surgically removed, with extensive lesion, sectoral resection of the breast is indicated. Removal of fibrous nodes in mastopathy is carried out in the case of large connective tissue formations. When detecting signs of malignant tissue degeneration, different types of mastectomy are performed.
