Dear Ruth,

Here is a little more on peau d'orange.  This is a French term and literally
means skin of an orange .  When a patient presents with this, they have skin
that looks like orange peel with a dimpled surface.  It represents
significant oedema (fluid in the tissues and outside of the cells).  The
indentations or holes are the accentuated orifices of the sweat glands.  The
holds are deepened by the surrounding swollen skin which gives the
appearance of an orange skin.

The differential diagnosis for a woman with peau d'orange would be mastitis,
abscess and breast cancer. Infections produce oedema through inflammation.
In cancer, the lymphatic obstruction produces oedema of the tissues.

Finally, what is oedema?  Same as edema but I trained at McGill in Montreal,
and proper English terminology was impressed upon us!

From the great arcane North,

Shirley Gross M.D.,C.M.,C.C.F.P.
Edmonton Breastfeeding Clinic