What causes gynecomastia?
Gynecomastia is the development of excessive breast tissue in a male. There are several conditions associated with gynecomastia that can include medications, hormonal imbalances and genetic disorders. Estrogen can cause an increase in male breast tissue whereas androgens limit male breast development. Estrogen is typically linked to female sexual characteristics while androgens are linked to male sexual characteristics. Both men and women possess estrogen and androgen hormones, but these hormones exist in different concentrations between sexes and the tissues of the body may be more or less sensitive to these hormones depending on whether you are male or female. Gynecosmastia can therefore be caused by conditions in which the male breast tissue is more receptive to estrogen than androgens. These causes can be broken down into conditions that cause excessive estrogen production, increased susceptibility to normal levels of estrogen, or conditions in which there is decreased androgen production.
In most cases, either no clear cause is ever found for gynecomastia and this is referred to as idiopathic or it is simply due to excessive fatty tissue of the breast. Depending on the level of extra fat and skin, this can be corrected with liposuction alone or a combination of liposuction and excision of skin and tissue.
The causes of gynecomastia are summarized in this table:
| Broad Classification | Specific Cause |
| Certain medicines | Estrogens |
| Androgens and anti-androgens | |
| Some chemotherapy (alkylating drugs) | |
| Calcium channel blockers (verapamil) | |
| ACE inhibitors (captopril) | |
| Dopamine blockers (metoclopromide) | |
| Central nervous system drugs (TCAs) | |
| Cimetidine | |
| Spironolactone | |
| Ketoconazole | |
| Cimetidine | |
| Several others | |
| Street drugs | Marijuana |
| Heroin | |
| Amphetamines | |
| Medical diseases | Liver disease (cirrhosis) |
| Kidney failure | |
| Thyroid disease (thyrotoxicosis) | |
| Gland failure | Adrenal gland failure (adrenal hypoplasia) |
| Cancer | Bronchogenic carcinoma (form of lung cancer) |
| HCG-secreting tumors of the testicles | |
| Steroid-producing tumors of testicles/adrenal gland | |
| Congenital disorders | Klinefelter’s syndrome |
| Androgen-insensitivity syndromes | |
| Miscellaneous | Several miscellaneous causes also exist |
To learn about which gynecomastia procedure is appropriate for you, see illustration:
To learn how ultrasonic liposuction is used to treat gynecomastia, how to treat gynecomastia that includes both fibrous tissue and a disk of tissue under the areola, or how to treat gynecomastia with a large amount of male breast tissue or skin excess, such as after significant weight loss, see illustration:
