Areolar glands, Glands of Montgomery, Glandulae areolares, Montgomery glands, Tubercula Montgomery, or Tubercula areolae are 10-15 elevations of the

areola The human areola (''areola mammae'', or ) is the pigmented area on the breast around the nipple. Areola, more generally, is a small circular area on the body with a different histology from the surrounding tissue, or other small circular ar ...

, usually arranged in a circle around the nipple, which are often particularly visible when the nipple is erect. They are

sebaceous gland A sebaceous gland is a microscopic exocrine gland in the skin that opens into a hair follicle to secrete an oily or waxy matter, called sebum, which lubricates the hair and skin of mammals. In humans, sebaceous glands occur in the greatest number ...

s which produce an oily secretion to lubricate the nipple when breastfeeding. Their function is to protect the skin and provide some air tightness between the infant's mouth and the nipple. Thus, they promote adequate breast feeding of the infant. In addition, recent research suggests that they produce a type of scent (pheromone) that guides infants to food.

Structure

Areolar glands are round bumps found in the

, and sometimes on the

nipple The nipple is a raised region of tissue on the surface of the breast from which, in females, milk leaves the breast through the lactiferous ducts to feed an infant. The milk can flow through the nipple passively or it can be ejected by smooth mu ...

Variation

The tubercles become more pronounced during

pregnancy Pregnancy is the time during which one or more offspring develops ( gestates) inside a woman's uterus (womb). A multiple pregnancy involves more than one offspring, such as with twins. Pregnancy usually occurs by sexual intercourse, but ca ...

. The number of glands can vary greatly, usually averaging from 4 to 28 per

breast The breast is one of two prominences located on the upper ventral region of a primate's torso. Both females and males develop breasts from the same embryological tissues. In females, it serves as the mammary gland, which produces and secret ...

Function

Areolar glands make oily secretions (lipoid fluid) to keep the areola and the nipple lubricated and protected. Volatile compounds in these secretions may also serve as an olfactory stimulus for newborn appetite. They can become exposed and raised when the nipple is stimulated. The skin over the surface opening is lubricated and tends to be smoother than the rest of the areola.

Clinical significance

Areolar glands may secrete excessive amounts of oil. This is a neutral condition that rarely represents any underlying problem, unlike

galactorrhoea Galactorrhea ( also spelled galactorrhoea) ( galacto- + -rrhea) or lactorrhea ( lacto- + -rrhea) is the spontaneous flow of milk from the breast, unassociated with childbirth or nursing. Galactorrhea is reported to occur in 5–32% of women. M ...

History

Areolar glands may also be called Glands of Montgomery, or Montgomery tubercles. They are named after Dr.

William Fetherstone Montgomery William Fetherstone Montgomery (1797–1859) was an Irish obstetrician credited for first describing the Glands of Montgomery. Life Montgomery was born, raised and educated in Dublin, Ireland. He attended medical school at Trinity Colleg ...

(1797–1859), an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

obstetrician Obstetrics is the field of study concentrated on pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. As a medical specialty, obstetrics is combined with gynecology under the discipline known as obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), which is a surgi ...

who first described them in 1837.

References