Breast pain, cyclical - Diagnosing cyclical breast pain
- Introduction
- Treating breast pain
- Causes
- Medicines information
- Symptoms of cyclical breast pain
- Diagnosing cyclical breast pain
Cyclical breast pain can usually be diagnosed after a consultation with a GP.
Your GP will be able to diagnose cyclical breast pain by asking you about your symptoms and your general health. For example, your GP may ask:
- whether the pain affects both breasts
- where in your breasts you feel the pain
- whether you are taking any medication, such as the combined contraceptive pill
- whether you could be pregnant
- whether you have any other symptoms, such as a lump or discharge from your nipples
- whether you smoke
- how much caffeine there is in your diet (found in tea, coffee and cola)
The answers to these questions will help your GP to rule out any other possible causes of your breast pain.
Your GP may also decide to examine your breasts if they feel lumpy when you experience breast pain.
Recording breast pain
If you have moderate to severe breast pain, your GP may ask you to complete a breast pain chart. The chart can be used to confirm your diagnosis and to plan appropriate treatment.
You can use a breast pain chart to record whether your breast pain on a particular day is mild, moderate or severe.
The chart will usually have a series of small boxes with the month and date next to each one. You fill in the box for each day of the month to indicate the level of pain that you have. This is usually done for at least two months.
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