Montgomery glands can become filled with a waxy substance. The gland then resembles a pimple with a white or yellowish head. These spots are known as Montgomery tubercles. Women do not have to be pregnant or breast-feeding for this to occur.
These swollen glands can be filled with a waxy substance, giving them the appearance of a spot or a pimple with a yellowish or white head. These are harmless. You should avoid squeezing, popping or trying to unclog Montgomery glands because this could lead to infection or skin injury.
About 20% of breastfeeding mothers report seeing fluid coming from their Montgomery glands. This happens because these important glands consist of both milk glands and sebaceous (sweat) glands. Breast milk travels down the breast ducts to the nipples, where it's available for a baby to drink.
Swollen Montgomery glands
These glands secrete oil to help keep the skin lubricated. At times, this secretion may resemble the pus that comes from a pimple. Swollen Montgomery glands are not common and may be related to breastfeeding or pregnancy.
Fluid leaking from one or both nipples when you are not breastfeeding is called nipple discharge. Clear, cloudy, or white discharge that appears only when you press on your nipple is usually normal. The more the nipple is pressed or stimulated, the more fluid appears.
Montgomery glands can become filled with a waxy substance. The gland then resembles a pimple with a white or yellowish head. These spots are known as Montgomery tubercles. Women do not have to be pregnant or breast-feeding for this to occur.
A white bleb is a very small white spot on the nipple tip. It forms in two ways - either when a tiny bit of skin overgrows the opening of the nipple and forms a blockage in the duct, or through the formation of a string of hardened or fattier milk within the duct. This is why it has a white or yellow spot appearance.
Irritated Montgomery's glands appear red and slightly swollen. Infected Montgomery's glands may look pimple-like with a “white-head” at the tip. Irritated or infected glands can be painful to touch. Montgomery's glands may be inflamed by ointments, bra fabrics, breast pads, soaps, etc.
Montgomery glands may become more enlarged in some circumstances, such as pregnancy, and then go back to normal size without causing a problem. But if bacteria gets into the gland, they can cause a clog and infection.
Montgomery tubercles look like small, raised bumps on your areolas. The number of bumps varies from person to person. Some women don't have any, while others have more than 20. Sometimes they fill up with a waxy substance, so they can occasionally look like a pimple with a white or yellowish head.
Here are some tips for caring for your Montgomery glands. Leave them alone: As long as your nipples and areola are soft and healthy, leave the Montgomery glands alone. Wash your breasts with warm water and avoid soaps that can wash away the protective substance secreted by your Montgomery glands.
A white spot on the nipple usually occurs in breastfeeding women, but can occur at other times. It is also referred to as a blocked nipple pore, a bleb or a milk blister. It is usually about the size of a pinhead or a little larger. The skin surrounding the white spot may be red and inflamed.
You may do this by taking a shower, soaking a wash cloth in warm water and holding it over the affected nipple, or soaking the breast in warm water with Epsom salts. If that doesn't work, you may try gently rubbing the blister with a clean, warm washcloth to remove any skin obstructing the milk duct.
Montgomery tubercles are small bumps around your nipples and are completely normal. They are most common during pregnancy and breastfeeding, as well as around puberty and throughout the menstrual cycle.
Galactorrhoea is milky nipple discharge not related to pregnancy or breast feeding. It is caused by the abnormal production of a hormone called prolactin. This can be caused by diseases of glands elsewhere in the body which control hormone secretion, such as the pituitary and thyroid glands.
The breasts may also start to produce colostrum (first milk for the baby). This colostrum may leak in droplets that then dry out and form a slightly crusty layer over the nipple. This is perfectly normal and happens to a lot of women during pregnancy and beyond.
There are usually no obvious signs of thrush on your nipples. However some signs may be present and include: your nipples may appear bright pink; the areola may be reddened, dry or flaky. Rarely a fine white rash may be seen.
Greyish or brownish stains are said to be the most common type of stain seen on the inside of a bra, typically due to release of normal oils from small ducts in nipples.
Montgomery's glands are large sebaceous glands capable of secreting milk; they represent an intermediate stage between the sweat and the mammary glands.
Breast cyst
They are usually noncancerous (benign). You may have one or multiple breast cysts. A breast cyst often feels like a grape or a water-filled balloon, but sometimes a breast cyst feels firm. Breast cysts don't require treatment unless a cyst is large and painful or uncomfortable.
Lumps in a woman are most often either fibroadenomas or cysts, or just normal variations in breast tissue known as fibrocystic changes. Fibrocystic changes are painful, lumpy breasts. This is a benign condition that does not increase your risk for breast cancer.
“[Areolas] contain small, sensitive bumps called Montgomery's glands, which secrete a fluid that keeps the nipples lubricated,” explains Dr. Aliabadi. So bumps are kinda part of the anatomy. Note that these oil glands can also become blocked, which may make them look larger or similar to a pimple.