There are many factors that can lead to burning sensation in breasts. Some of them are mentioned, and described in short, in the following HerHaleness article.
Did You Know?
Human females are the only primates that exhibit permanent, fully-formed breasts, even when not pregnant. Other mammalian females show the presence of full breasts only during pregnancy and the subsequent stage of lactation.
Burning sensation in breast is not an uncommon condition for women. Almost all women have to suffer from it at some point in their lives.
There are innumerable causes for this condition. Some of them are diseases and disorders, while some are normal occurrences that naturally take place in your body. In order to identify the exact cause, you must consult a doctor and get your breasts examined via a mammography.
Possible Causes
- Cerebrovascular Accident: It occurs when the supply of blood to the brain gets interrupted, and the resultant lack of oxygen causes injury or death of brain cells. This in turn leads to the impairment of normal functioning and sensing of the body parts corresponding to the area of the brain that is damaged. This is also known as a brain stroke, and may result in loss of sensation, function, or a paralytic attack. If the chest area is affected by such an incident, then one may experience a severe burning sensation in the breast. One should get it checked immediately.
- Diabetes: Burning sensation in underarm and breast is often associated with diabetes. Diabetes is defined as the medical condition wherein the body is unable to regulate glucose levels in the blood, which results in the presence of excess of glucose in the blood. It often leads to nerve entrapment. If the nerves present in the breast get affected in this manner, you may feel pain, tingling, and a burning sensation there.
- Hormone Fluctuations: The level of hormones in the body change according to the mental state of the woman as well as her physical state. The physical state refers to her monthly menstrual cycle. This cycle is often accompanied by stomach cramps and tenderness in breasts. The hormonal fluctuations may also act to exacerbate a dormant underlying condition, to give rise to benign growths in the breast tissue. This is often seen in cases of women with a family history of breast cancer.
- Implant Ruptures: Women having silicone breast implants need to be aware of the fact that they can rupture and give rise to several complications. Some of the commonly observed symptoms of a ruptured implant are pain, numbness, tingling, or inflammation in the breast. You may feel a hard knot or lump in the area around the implant or in the underarm. You may notice a change in breast size and distortion in breast shape. These signs may be accompanied with either softening or hardening of the breast.
- Inflammatory Breast Cancer: Individuals who are affected by this type of cancer experience swelling and pain in the breast. It is a rare type of cancer. The swelling in the breast is due to the blockage of the flow of lymphatic fluids in the lymph vessels. This leads to inflammation, redness, increased swelling, and burning sensation. This condition is very aggressive and advances rapidly, hence, one should consult a doctor as soon as one experiences pain and swelling in the breast.
- Mastitis: In case of lactating mothers, sometimes the milk does not drain completely from the milk ducts, this residual milk causes discomfort to the woman, and is accompanied by tenderness and a burning sensation. There may also be presence of a reddish lump along the breast muscles. If this condition is left untreated, it could lead to an infection, which would cause further pain and discomfort. The infection of the milk duct is also known as mastitis.
- Muscle Strain: During the course of exercising or due to any bodily injury, if the pectoral muscles are damaged, it would lead to inflammation in the breast. Pectoral muscles refer to the chest muscles present below the breast tissue.
- Neuropathy: Nerve damage also one of the causes of this condition. The damage may be due to diabetes, abnormal nerve function, side effect of certain drugs, etc., and is often accompanied by numbness. Some cases of nerve damage may be permanent, while some can be treated with the help of medications and lifestyle modifications.
- Paget’s Disease: According to medical dictionaries, Paget’s disease is a chronic disorder of the bones which is marked by enlarged and deformed bone. A similar type of skin cancer has also been observed to occur, and is called Paget’s disease of the breast. It causes an eczema-like change in the nipple skin. There are scaly, red rashes present on the nipple and areola (the dark area surrounding the nipple). All these signs are accompanied by burning sensation in breast. In majority of the cases, the woman has breast cancer.
- Paresthesia: Paresthesia is described as an abnormal sensation of the skin. It is characterized by numbness, pricking, tingling and creeping on the skin. The exact underlying factor for paresthesia is still unknown. However, medical professionals believe that there are certain medical conditions that can give rise to paresthesia. They include nutritional disturbances, physical trauma, diseases of connective tissues, malignancy, intoxication by heavy metals (like mercury, lead and arsenic), infections such as Lyme disease and genetic diseases like porphyria.
- Pregnancy: During pregnancy, the breasts undergo a number of changes so as to enable one to feed the baby after childbirth. Some of the changes include increase in the levels of hormones such as estrogen and progesterone, formation of milk ducts and milk producing cells, and formation of fat layers under the breasts, and thus increase in breast size. All these changes often cause a lot of discomfort. The breasts may also feel tender to touch, sore, and burning.
- Premenstrual Syndrome: It is described as the physical, behavioral, and mental disturbances which occur after ovulation and normally end with the onset of the next menstruation. There are numerous symptoms of premenstrual syndrome such as tenderness and burning sensation, breast swelling, hot flushes, headache, dizziness, constipation, etc.
Inflammation in the breast could also be experienced in case the individual suffers from any musculoskeletal condition such as arthritis, osteoporosis, spinal cord injury, and cellular fatty acid imbalance. The use of medications like birth control pills and hormone therapy could also result in breast pain.
One can never know what the exact underlying factor is, till you get yourself properly diagnosed for it. Thus, pay a visit to a medical practitioner, and undergo all the tests and examinations that the doctor prescribes. If the causative factor is some disease or disorder, do get proper medical treatment for it. Take care of your body to lead a healthy and disease-free life.
Disclaimer: This HerHaleness article is for informative purposes only, and should not be used as a replacement for expert medical advice.
