News / Africa
HIV positive man develops breasts after taking ARVs
19 Jun 2012 at 05:42hrs | Views
AN HIV-positive Mpumalanga man who developed breasts after taking ARVs five years ago had them removed at Johannesburg Hospital last year. And today the man leads a normal life again after three years of shame.
In 2007, Sowetan reported how Sabelo Maepa (not his real name) developed female-like boobs from the side effects of the type of ARVs he was taking. Maepa had been diagnosed HIV positive that year and his boobs began to grow a month after he started taking ARV drugs. He said he realised four weeks after being given ARVs that his breasts had started developing and informed doctors and nurses at the TB hospital in Standerton where he was admitted.
Roger Mixter, a plastic surgeon, described Maepa's ailment as gynaecomastia, or "man boobs". Mixter said all men have a small amount of mammary gland tissue beneath their nipples and this tissue is usually small and inconsequential. In man boobs, this breast tissue starts to enlarge, said Mixter.
He said breasts that develop on a man can be made up of mammary gland tissue, fat or, most commonly, a combination of both. It is usually caused by an imbalance in the two sex hormones, oestrogen and testosterone. He said all men and women have both oestrogen and testosterone naturally in different amounts in their bodies.
"Hormonal imbalances can be caused by conditions ranging from pituitary problems to liver disease. Any man who develops gynaecomastia or man boobs must be evaluated to determine if there is an underlying cause, and have that cause treated if possible. Frequently, correcting the underlying problem can reverse the breast development," Mixter said.
In 2007, Sowetan reported how Sabelo Maepa (not his real name) developed female-like boobs from the side effects of the type of ARVs he was taking. Maepa had been diagnosed HIV positive that year and his boobs began to grow a month after he started taking ARV drugs. He said he realised four weeks after being given ARVs that his breasts had started developing and informed doctors and nurses at the TB hospital in Standerton where he was admitted.
Roger Mixter, a plastic surgeon, described Maepa's ailment as gynaecomastia, or "man boobs". Mixter said all men have a small amount of mammary gland tissue beneath their nipples and this tissue is usually small and inconsequential. In man boobs, this breast tissue starts to enlarge, said Mixter.
He said breasts that develop on a man can be made up of mammary gland tissue, fat or, most commonly, a combination of both. It is usually caused by an imbalance in the two sex hormones, oestrogen and testosterone. He said all men and women have both oestrogen and testosterone naturally in different amounts in their bodies.
"Hormonal imbalances can be caused by conditions ranging from pituitary problems to liver disease. Any man who develops gynaecomastia or man boobs must be evaluated to determine if there is an underlying cause, and have that cause treated if possible. Frequently, correcting the underlying problem can reverse the breast development," Mixter said.
Source - sowetan
