The Role of Corticosteroids Along With Other Therapies in Treating Idiopathic Granulomatous Mastitis: A Narrative Review Publisher



Mirzapour A¹ ; Allahyari A¹ ; Metanat S¹ ; Zand S² ; Mohammadzadeh N² ; Tabary M³ ; Karbakhsh M⁴ ; Kaviani A^{2, 5} Show Affiliations
Source: Archives of Breast Cancer Published:2022

Abstract

Background: The use of oral corticosteroids to treat idiopathic granulomatous mastitis (IGM) has been a point of controversy for a long time. In addition, a wide diversity of combinations with other therapies have been reported so far. This study aims to review the usage of oral corticosteroids and their combinations in the published literature. Methods: PubMed and Scopus were searched using the key word granulomatous mastitis. Citations were filtered in two stages, considering the titles/abstracts and full texts. Papers reporting the treatment of IGM with corticosteroids with/without other treatments were included. Results: Fifty-eight citations were included in this study, 31 of which had at least a group of patients treated only with systemic corticosteroids. Combination therapy of systemic steroids with immunosuppressants, surgical interventions, and antibiotics were used in 6, 12, and 13 studies, respectively. Conclusion: Considering the inconsistency of studies in reporting the severity of the disease, administered treatments, outcome of treatment, side effects, and follow-up, our study failed to provide solid evidence for using corticosteroids as the first step in the management of idiopathic granulomatous mastitis. There is still a need for further studies emphasizing the homogenization of such reports. In this regard, preparing a questionnaire to help homogenize future reports on IGM is highly recommended. © 2022 Farname Scientific Publishing Inc.. All rights reserved.