Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Email
Answers.com

areola

 
(ə-rē'ə-lə) pronunciation also ar·e·ole (âr'ē-ōl')
n., pl., -lae (-lē'), or -las, also -oles (-ōlz').
  1. areole
    1. Biology. A small space or interstice in a tissue or part, such as the area bounded by small veins in a leaf or the wing of an insect.
    2. A small, specialized, cushionlike area on a cactus from which hairs, glochids, spines, branches, or flowers may arise.
  2. Anatomy. A small ring of color around a center portion, as about the nipple of the breast or the part of the iris surrounding the pupil of the eye.

[Latin āreola, small open space, diminutive of ārea, open place. See area.]

areolar a·re'o·lar or a·re'o·late (-lĭt) adj.
areolation a·re'o·la'tion n.

Search unanswered questions...
Enter a question here...
Search: All sources Community Q&A Reference topics

1. containing minute spaces.
2. pertaining to an areola.

  • a. connective tissue — loose, spongy connective tissue.
Random House Word Menu:

categories related to 'areola'

Top
Random House Word Menu by Stephen Glazier
For a list of words related to areola, see:

This article is about the breast tissue. For the entomology term, see the glossary of Lepidopteran terms. For an artistic cloud motif, see aureola. For the cactus feature, see Areole.

Areola
Female Areola.jpg
Close-up of a human female breast showing the areola.
Breast anatomy normal scheme.png
Breast schematic diagram
(adult female human cross section)
Legend: 1. Chest wall 2. Pectoralis muscles
3. Lobules 4. Nipple 5. Areola 6. Duct
7. Fatty tissue 8. Skin
Latin areola mammae
Gray's subject #271 1267

In anatomy, an areola, plural areolæ (diminutive of Latin area, "open place") is any circular area on the breast such as the colored skin surrounding the nipple. Although the term is most commonly used to describe the pigmented area around the human nipple (areola mammae), it can also be used to describe other small circular areas such as the inflamed region surrounding a pimple.

Contents

Human mammary areola

Careful inspection of a mature human female nipple will reveal several small openings arranged radially around the tip of the nipple (lactiferous ducts) from which milk is released during lactation. Other small openings in the areola are sebaceous glands, known as Montgomery's glands (or glands of Montgomery),[citation needed] which provide lubrication to protect the area around the nipple and assist with suckling and pumping of the lactation.[citation needed] These can be quite obvious and raised above the surface of the areola, giving the appearance of "goose-flesh". This tissue, in addition to supporting the flow of milk, also bears the brunt of physical stress that the suckling involves.[citation needed]

Color

Another reason for its color comes from an abundance of two polymers: eumelanin (the brown pigment) and pheomelanin (the red pigment).[citation needed] The genetically-directed amount of these pigments determines the color of the areola. They can range from pale yellow or pink to dark brown or nearly black, but generally tend to be paler among people with lighter skin tones and darker among people with darker skin tones.

Additionally, it has been claimed that a reason for the differing color is to make the nipple area more visible to the infant.[1]

An individual's areolae may also change color over time in response to hormonal changes caused by menstruation, certain medications, and aging.[citation needed] Most notably, the areolae may darken substantially during pregnancy — some regression to the original color may occur after the baby is born, but again, this varies from individual to individual.

Size and shape

The size and shape of areolae are also highly variable, with those of sexually mature women usually being larger than those of men and prepubescent girls. Human areolae are mostly circular in shape, but many women and some men have areolae that are noticeably elliptical.

The average diameter of male areolae is around 25 mm (1 in). Sexually mature women have an average of 38.1 mm (1.5 in), but sizes range up to 100 mm (4 in) or greater.[2] Lactating women, or women with particularly large breasts, may have even larger areolæ.

Rated according to the Tanner scale, in stage four, the areolæ are raised.[3] In stage five, they are no longer raised.[4]

Diseases

References

  1. ^ http://health.yahoo.net/experts/breastcancer/what-color-your-areola-tells-about-you
  2. ^ 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
  3. ^ Le, Tao; Bhushan, Vikas; Tolles, Juliana (2011). First Aid for the USMLE Step 1 2011. McGraw-Hill Medical. 
  4. ^ Le, Tao; Bhushan, Vikas; Tolles, Juliana (2011). First Aid for the USMLE Step 1 2011. McGraw-Hill Medical. 

Translations:

Areola

Top

Dansk (Danish)
n. - areola

Nederlands (Dutch)
areola (plekje/kring b.v. om tepel), ruimte tussen lijnen (b.v. op blad)

Français (French)
n. - (Anat) aréole

Deutsch (German)
n. - Warzenhof, (biol./med.) Areole

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (ανατ., βιολ.) άλως, κύκλος γύρω από τη θηλή μαστού, χασμάτιο, διάκενο (ιστού)

Italiano (Italian)
areola

Português (Portuguese)
n. - auréola (f) (Astr.) (Med.) (Bot.)

Русский (Russian)
розовый кружок вокруг соски

Español (Spanish)
n. - areola, aureola

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - avgränsat fält, vårtgård (anat.)

中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
网眼状空隙

中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 網眼狀空隙

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 극히 작은 틈

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 小隙, 輪

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) حلقه ملونه, فجوه‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮טבעת, טבעת הפטמה, שטח קטן בין קווים (למשל בעלה)‬


 
 
Related topics:
subareolar
areole
ecthyma (medicine)

Related answers:
Can you shrink your areolas? Read answer...
Who has the biggest areolas? Read answer...
Are bumps on your areolas a sign of pregnancy? Read answer...

Help us answer these:
Why do areolas get bigger?
Why is your areola pink?
Do cats have areolas?

Post a question - any question - to the WikiAnswers community:

 

Copyrights:

American Heritage Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Saunders Veterinary Dictionary. Saunders Comprehensive Veterinary Dictionary 3rd Edition. Copyright © 2007 by D.C. Blood, V.P. Studdert and C.C. Gay, Elsevier. All rights reserved.  Read more
Random House Word Menu. © 2010 Write Brothers Inc. Word Menu is a registered trademark of the Estate of Stephen Glazier. Write Brothers Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
 Rhymes. Oxford University Press. © 2006, 2007 All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia on Answers.com. This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article Areola Read more
Translations. Copyright © 2007, WizCom Technologies Ltd. All rights reserved.  Read more