Local Steroid Treatment: An Effective Procedure for Idiopathic Granulomatous Mastitis, Including Complicated Cases

Abstract Background: This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of local steroid treatment (LST) for idiopathic granulomatous mastitis (IGM) and to compare with surgical methods.Methods: Data was retrospectively collected from hospital electronic records. The patients were divided into two groups, the LST group and the surgery group. Intralesional steroid injection and topical steroid administration were applied in LST group. Surgery and LST were compared with regard to: pain before and after the treatment; complication rate; recurrence rate; and treatment cost.Results: Seventy of 72 lesions responded completely to LST. Pre-treatment median maximum diameter was 23.50 (15.25-35.25) mm, which regressed to 16 (12-25) mm after the first LST session. LST was found to be superior to surgery in pain management. No recurrence occurred in any patients in LST group.Conclusion: LST is a treatment for IGM that is cheap, with high efficiency, negligible recurrence, and has good esthetic outcome.