The Use of Intralesional Corticosteroids in Idiopathic Granulomatous Mastitis: A Systematic Review.

Idiopathic granulomatous mastitis (IGM) is a debilitating, chronic, inflammatory condition of the breast. Several studies have emerged evaluating intralesional steroid (ILS) injection and topical steroid administration as a treatment for IGM. However, there is a dearth of international consensuses with regards to the management of IGM. Therefore, we have systematically reviewed the effectiveness of ILS in the management of IGM. A systematic search was conducted in PubMed and Cochrane Library databases, the Google Scholar website and by citation searching up to June 15th, 2023. Eight articles were selected and analyzed. A total of 397 IGM patients were included in the review. The mean patient age was 35.7 years, ranging from 23-62 years. The mean pre-treatment diameter of lesions was 27.5 mm. A total of 184 patients were treated with ILS. The mean complete clinical response time was 2.6 months. The overall complete response rate was 92.8%. Complications following ILS were minor, with hematoma, skin atrophy and hyperemia being commonly described, while avoiding the systemic side effects of oral steroid use, such as weight gain and hirsutism, which were the most commonly reported side effects with oral steroids. The recurrence rates in the ILS group (6.6%) appear to be lower than in the oral steroid group (25.8%) and surgery group (26.3%). ILS seem to show a favorable outcome in terms of complete response rate, complete clinical response time and has a lower recurrence rate and complication rate when compared to other intervention strategies. However, more comparative studies with standardized protocols are necessary to ascertain the optimum type, dosage and frequency of ILS regimens.