Congenital abnormalities of the breast

Congenital abnormalities of the breast and chest wall are seen frequently in breast, pediatric and plastic surgery clinics. Management involves a multidisciplinary team approach. The treatment for many of these conditions includes surgical correction. If the child is still growing, treatment timing is crucial and many of the surgical corrective procedures require more than one operation over a number of years. Although these deformities have less impact on functional capacity, the psychological consequences can be serious in adolescent patients. They can experience embarrassment, social isolation and complexities during sexual development, and this results in problems with relationships. The aim of this article is to spread awareness among the medical community of this range of conditions, so appropriate referrals are made and their impact is reduced by timely appropriate surgical intervention if appropriate.