Incremental role of mammography in the evaluation of gynecomastia in men who have undergone chest CT

Emily B. Sonnenblick, Mary Salvatore, Janet Szabo, Karen A. Lee, Laurie R. Margolies

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

15 Scopus citations

Abstract

OBJECTIVE. The purpose of this study was to determine whether additional breast imaging is clinically valuable in the evaluation of patients with gynecomastia incidentally observed on CT of the chest. MATERIALS AND METHODS. In a retrospective analysis, 62 men were identified who had a mammographic diagnosis of gynecomastia and had also undergone CT within 8 months (median, 2 months). We compared the imaging findings of both modalities and correlated them with the clinical outcome. RESULTS. Gynecomastia was statistically significantly larger on mammograms than on CT images; however, there was a high level of concordance in morphologic features and distribution of gynecomastia between mammography and CT. In only one case was gynecomastia evident on mammographic but not CT images, owing to cachexia. Two of the 62 men had ductal carcinoma, which was obscured by gynecomastia. Both of these patients had symptoms suggesting malignancy. CONCLUSION. The appearance of gynecomastia on CT scans and mammograms was highly correlated. Mammography performed within 8 months of CT is unlikely to reveal cancer unless there is a suspicious clinical finding or a breast mass eccentric to the nipple. Men with clinical symptoms of gynecomastia do not need additional imaging with mammography to confirm the diagnosis if they have undergone recent cross-sectional imaging.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)234-240
Number of pages7
JournalAmerican Journal of Roentgenology
Volume207
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 2016

Keywords

  • Chest CT
  • Gynecomastia
  • Male breast
  • Mammography

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