A recent study indicates that gynecomastia, or male breast growth, has a significant psychological impact on adolescent boys. Gynecomastia, a possible Risperdal side effect, is a metabolic condition that causes breast development in adolescent and adult patients.

A report published in the January 2014 issue of the medical journal Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery indicated that even the most mild breast development can impact a young patient’s psyche.

The study primarily focused on what happens to the patient when gynecomastia occurs. This includes the age at which the patient began to develop breasts, and how each of them specifically reacted to their new development. Researchers analyzed how gynecomastia interfered with their social functioning, mental health, and self-esteem. The researchers concluded that healthcare providers be aware of the problems associated with gynecomastia and consider different remedies.

The study was conducted at Boston Children’s Hospital, and analyzed 47 boys between the ages of 12 and 21 with gynecomastia, and 92 boys without the condition. The adolescents who had developed gynecomastia reported embarrassment, humiliation, rejection and teasing due to their breast development. The affected boys also indicated increased feelings of loneliness, restlessness, and tension, physical limitations, bodily pain and disorderly eating habits.

According to researchers: “Gynecomastia has a significant negative impact on primarily the psychosocial well-being of affected adolescent patients, specifically in regard to social functioning, mental health, and self-esteem. Psychosocial impact was not affected by graded severity of disease. Health care providers and patients should be aware of the psychosocial impairments associated with gynecomastia and consider early treatment for adolescents suffering from this condition, regardless of severity.”

Risperdal Side Effects Linked to Causing Gynecomastia

Dozens of boys and young men have come forward in recent years to claim they developed male breasts as a result of taking Risperdal.

Risperdal’s drug label currently does not mention the possibility of gynecomastia, leading to a number of product liability lawsuits from young men who had been prescribed the drug. The drug’s manufacturer, Johnson & Johnson, has received the brunt of the allegations and criticism from the medical community about the side effect.

Risperdal is currently one of the most popular antipsychotic medications used in the United States. It is most popularly prescribed to children, though medical experts hope that is subject to change due to recent discoveries. It was originally approved by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) in 1993 to treat schizophrenia in adult and adolescent patients, and has since been prescribed to more than 10 million people.

Risperdal is unique among most antipsychotics because it works by blocking the neurotransmitter for dopamine. Dopamine is a brain chemical which primarily coordinates the brain’s motivation, pleasure, movement and frontal cortex function. Other antipsychotics focus on different chemicals, and aim to stabilize the entire brain, rather than mediate the process as Risperdal does. Patients often complain that other medications leave them physically and emotionally exhausted.

Despite the praise the drug has received for its efficiency, it has been discovered that Risperdal may cause gynecomastia in male pediatric and adolescent patients. Hundreds of lawsuits have been filed against Johnson & Johnson, alleging that there had been no indications of this on the drug’s label, leaving patients vulnerable to the embarrassing side effect.