Clinical and epidemiological criteria for idiopathic granulomatous mastitis among women in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq: A retrospective study

Idiopathic granulomatous mastitis (IGM) is a chronic, rare, non-cancerous, non-lactational mastitis that mostly occurs in parous women with a history of breastfeeding. To identify the sociodemographic, clinical presentation, etiological factors, and the possible clinical correlations among female patients with IGM, using clinical and epidemiological criteria. This observational, retrospective, cross-sectional study evaluates 100 patients with IGM, from 2015 to 2025 at the Breast Center, Shar Teaching Hospital, Sulaimaniyah, Iraq. Their sociodemographic characteristics, reproductive history, clinical presentation, and clinical correlations to the development of IGM were collected and analyzed using a standard questionnaire. The mean age of the patients was 36.5 ± 7.8 years. The majority has normal body weight (46%), residence in urban area (91%), illiterate (45%), married (99%), medium class (69%), housewives (73%), smokers (67%), had 3-5 children (44%), had no physical activity (79%), had a history of last breastfeeding < 5 years (63%), had breastfed > 12 months (53%), had bra-wearing habits (93%), practiced hygienic breastfeeding (97%), and had a unilaterally affected breast (99%), especially the upper outer quadrant (UOQ; 38%). The profound clinical presentations were breast mass (96%), pain (86%), and erythema (52%). Also, 45% had thyroid disease, 11% had diabetes, 33% used hormones, 31% had abnormal sleep, and 29% had an emotional abnormality. IGM is a chronic inflammatory disease of obscure etiology that occurs mainly in parous women with a history of prolonged breastfeeding. Its clinical characteristics are a unilateral breast mass with or without pain, mostly at the UOQ. Exogenous hormonal users, psychotropic drugs, hyperprolactinemia, and thyroid disorders are shown to have a role in developing IGM.