Breast Rash: Causes

What causes breast rash?

Breast rash may have many possible causes, including allergens (agents that cause allergies), infections, autoimmune disorders, or other causes such as stress.

Allergic or inflammatory causes of breast rash

Breast rash may be caused by contact dermatitis. Common triggers include:

• Cosmetics, dyes or detergents
• Industrial chemicals, such as those found in elastic, latex and rubber
• Metallic substances such as jewelry
• Poison ivy or oak

Other allergic causes of breast rash include:

• Eczema (skin disorder causing scaly or blistering rashes that may be caused by allergy)
• Food allergies (allergic reactions to certain foods)
• Insect bite allergy such as a bee sting

Infectious causes of breast rash

Breast rash can also be caused by infections including:

• Chickenpox or shingles
• Eczema (skin disorder causing scaly or blistering rashes that may be caused by infection)
• Impetigo
• Lyme disease (inflammatory bacterial disease caused by ticks)
• Mastitis (infection or inflammation of the breast)
• Measles, mumps, rubella, roseola, and scarlet fever
• Meningitis (infection or inflammation of the sac around the brain and spinal cord)
• Pityriasis rosea (rash resembling the shape of a pine tree)
• Ringworm
• Rocky Mountain spotted fever
• Strep throat (bacterial throat infection)

Autoimmune causes of breast rash

Breast rash can also be caused by autoimmune disorders including:

• Kawasaki disease (rare, serious pediatric disorder characterized by inflammation of blood vessels, high fever, rash, and mucous membrane changes)
• Psoriasis
• Rheumatoid arthritis (chronic autoimmune disease characterized by joint inflammation)
• Systemic lupus erythematosus (disorder in which the body attacks its own healthy cells and tissues)

Other causes of breast rash

Breast rash can be caused by other conditions including:

• Extreme cold or heat
• Mammary duct ectasia (dilation of a milk duct in the breast)
• Mastitis (infection or inflammation of the breast)
• Medications
• Stress
• Sunburn

Serious or life-threatening causes of breast rash

In some cases, rash may be a symptom of a serious or life-threatening condition that should be evaluated immediately in an emergency setting. These include:

• Allergic purpura
• Anaphylaxis (life-threatening allergic reaction)
• Inflammatory breast cancer
• Paget’s disease of the breast

Questions for diagnosing the cause of breast rash

To diagnose your condition, your doctor or licensed health care practitioner will ask you several questions related to your breast rash including:

• When did the rash begin?
• Are you breastfeeding?
• Are you taking any medications?
• Do you have allergies?
• Does the rash cause any itching or scaling?
• Do you feel otherwise healthy?
• Have you tried any new products recently, such as soaps, perfumes or sprays?
• Have you spent a lot of time outdoors lately?

What are the potential complications of breast rash?

Because breast rash may be due to serious diseases, failure to seek treatment can result in serious complications and permanent damage. For example, infectious diseases, such as mumps or measles, can lead to rare but serious complications, including miscarriage, hearing loss, and serious brain infections, such as encephalitis or meningitis. Left untreated, mastitis can lead to an abscess in the breast, which must be drained and treated with antibiotics.

Once the underlying cause of your rash is diagnosed, it is important for you to follow the treatment plan that you and your health care professional design specifically for you to reduce the risk of potential complications including:

• Arthritis
• Cognitive difficulties
• Encephalitis (inflammation and swelling of the brain due to a viral infection or other causes)
• Meningitis (infection or inflammation of the sac around the brain and spinal cord)
• Miscarriage or stillbirth
• Paralysis
• Permanent hearing loss
• Secondary infections, which may develop from scratching and related skin trauma
• Spread of cancer

References:

Skin rashes and other changes. FamilyDoctor.org. http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/tools/symptom/545.html. Accessed April 19, 2011.

Rashes. Medline Plus, a service of the National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003220.htm. Accessed April 19, 2011.