Editing Nipple (section)

===Appearance===
[[File:DSC0216 Burma Chin Village near Lemro River Pretty little girl (7374973732).jpg|thumb|Prior to [[puberty]], the nipples on girls are very similar to boys.]]

Changes in appearance may be normal or related to disease.
* [[Inverted nipple]]s – This is normal if the nipples have always been indented inward and can easily point out when touched. If the nipples are pointing in and this is new, this is an unexpected change.
* Skin puckering of the nipple – This can be caused by scar tissue from surgery or an infection. Often, scar tissue forms for no reason. Most of the time this issue does not need treatment. This is an unexpected change. This change can be of concern since puckering or retraction of the nipple can indicate an underlying change in breast tissue that may be cancerous.{{sfn|Hansen|2010|p=83}}
* The nipple is warm to the touch, red or painful – This can be an infection. It is rarely due to breast cancer.
* Scaly, flaking, or itchy nipple – This is most often due to [[dermatitis|eczema]] or a bacterial or fungal infection. This change is not expected. Flaking, scaly, or itchy nipples can be a sign of Paget's disease.
* Thickened skin with large pores – This is called [[peau d'orange]] because the skin looks like an orange peel. An infection in the breast or inflammatory breast cancer can cause this problem. This is not an expected change.
* Retracted nipples – The nipple was raised above the surface but changes, begins to pull inward, and does not come out when stimulated.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://medlineplus.gov/ency/patientinstructions/000622.htm|title=Breast skin and nipple changes: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia|website=medlineplus.gov|access-date=12 August 2017}} {{PD-notice}}</ref>
The average projection and size of human female nipples is slightly more than {{convert|3/8|in}}.<ref>M. Hussain, L. Rynn, C. Riordan and P. J. Regan, "Nipple-areola reconstruction: outcome assessment"; ''European Journal of Plastic Surgery'', Vol. 26, Num. 7, December, 2003</ref>