Endocrine disrupters and hyperestrogenism

Background: Bloody nipple discharge rarely occurs in infants,but represents a cause of stress for the parents. Sometimes could be produced by an increase estrogen levels from an external source, represented by an endocrine disruptors (cosmetic products with estrogen, medication, food).

Aim of paper: To demonstrate that the bloody nipple discharge in childhood is frecuently benign and it´s related with endocrine disrupters.

Matherial and method: We present a 15 months-old girl with bloody nipple discharge without a history of medication or trauma. Physical examination revealed a healthy child with normal findings. At the left breast the skin had a normal aspect, with no injuries or palpable masses. Pressure on the areolar area didn´t bring us any new. We realized a breast ultrasound and blood analizes. All was normal, but a high level of estradiol was found. We have considered there is a disruptive endocrine factor, thinking in the estrogens from chicken breast (presented every day in her diet). So we have advised parents to remove the chicken breast from the girl´s diet. After two months, the estrogen level was normal and the girl has no more bleeding, as well as one year later.

Discussion: As we comment, there were no history of medication or application of cosmetic products at breast region. We considered that the hyperestrogenism could be caused by the contamination by dietary intake of chicken breast. Chicken is often injected with estrogen for obtaining much breast chicken; when we eat it, this hormons will be transferred to our body. The children are more vulnerable at these hormons and could develop various clinical manifestations.

Conclusion: In our patient we found an increased estrogen level from diet. Therefore the level of estrogen as well as the hypertrophy of glandular tissue regressed within 2 months with the change of the diet.