Men who take Invega can develop man boobs, a medical condition called gynecomastia. Sometimes, these man boobs even produce a milky discharge.

Invega is the brand name of generic paliperidone, an antipsychotic medicine used to treat schizophrenia.

It works by changing the effects of brain chemicals, particularly dopamine. Invega side effects can include several disturbances of the reproductive system.

Invega is a dopamine antagonist, which means that it binds to the dopamine receptors in the front of the brain, the area responsible for integrating emotions, perceptions and self-control.

Dopamine overactivity is largely blamed for inducing schizophrenia and other symptoms of psychosis that include breaks from reality.

Schizophrenia is a chronic, disabling mental disorder that affects more than two million Americans. Symptoms include hallucinations, delusions, disordered thinking, movement disorders and social withdrawal.

Those with schizophrenia often have difficulty with perception, memory or abstract thinking that interferes with one’s ability to learn; impaired judgment, inattentiveness, impulsiveness or impairment of speech.

Invega is manufactured by Johnson & Johnson and was approved by the FDA in November 2006 as an anti-psychotic medication to treat schizophrenia.

Why Would Invega Cause Male Breast Growth?

Drug.com lists 30 possible Invega side effects. Because dopamine is a brain chemical, interfering with it can affect multiple organs and systems. Here are just a few of the side effects listed:

• Absent, missed, or irregular menstrual periods
• difficulty having a bowel movement
• fear or nervousness
• headache
• weight gain
• swelling of the breasts or breast soreness in both females and males
• unexpected or excess milk flow from breasts
• heartburn
• lack or loss of strength
• muscle aches
• sore throat

Invega works by blocking dopamine receptors, but it also blocks dopamine’s action on the pituitary gland. This can result in an increase in prolactin, the hormone that controls sex drive in males and enables lactation (breast milk production) in females.

When prolactin levels reach abnormally high levels, the condition is called hyperprolactinemia. The result is man boobs.

This increase in size includes not only fatty tissue, but glandular tissue as well. Since it is not all fatty tissue, only augmentation surgery can help reduce the size of the breasts.

Invega side effects in some men and boys have included weight gain and breast enlargement that results in lopsided breasts because one is larger than the other. Male breast growth has even resulted in breast size that is the equivalent of a “D” bra cup size.

Help for Males with Gynecomastia

Male breast growth is not an easy Invega side effect for boys to handle. To be a young man with schizophrenia would be challenging, but to add a physical side effect such as male breast growth would be unsettling.

Man boobs on a boy or young man can make him the target of teasing, bullying and affect other social interactions. The preteen, teen and young adult years generally present sufficient challenges to even those without man boobs.

If you or someone you know has taken Invega and suffered from gynecomastia as a side effect, you could be eligible for compensation through a class action law suit.