BREASTFEEDING AND MASTITIS

Breastfeeding mums often come down with mastitis – it’s painful and makes you feel awful, so it’s important to get on to it quickly. Mastitis is a bacterial infection of the breast that, if left untreated or incompletely treated, can progress to form a breast abscess.

How it feels

Generally, there is a sudden onset of fever. You can suffer from chills, flu-like aching and a generally unwell feeling. A tender, red, hot, swollen, wedge-shaped area on one breast can form.

What to do

• Draining the breast is vital. Your baby taking a feed is the best way to do this. You can also express milk, either by hand or with a pump. • Prior to a feed, apply heat with either a warm face cloth or wheat pack (wrapped in a hand towel). • If the breast is very swollen, apply a cool pack. Frozen peas wrapped in a hand towel works quite well. • Massage your breast with your fingertips down towards the nipple. • Feed baby from the affected breast first, with baby’s chin pointing towards the infected area if possible. • Ensure baby finishes feeding from the affected breast and that the breast is soft to feel afterwards. • Express the second side for comfort if necessary, if baby is too full to feed from it. • After feeding, apply cool packs or cabbage leaves for no longer than 20 minutes. • Rest. Accept all offers of help and go to bed if possible. • Some midwives and lactation consultants find that Vitamin C is very effective in combating mastitis if started early enough. Panadol is also helpful for pain and fever. • If symptoms do not improve in 12 hours, see your midwife or GP for antibiotics. The course must be completed. Do not attempt to wean your baby during this time. Breast milk and antibiotics will not harm your baby. • It is normal for your breast milk supply to reduce during a bout of mastitis. With extra protein and fluids in your diet, plus lots of rest, it won’t be long before your breast milk supply will be back to what it was.

How to keep mastitis at bay

• Make sure your baby is feeding effectively from the breast. Do you hear swallowing? Are baby’s eyes open as he breastfeeds? Look for the rhythmic suck-swallow movement of the jaw near baby’s ear. • If baby’s latching on to the breast is painful for you try again, and if you are not happy with how latching and positioning is going, seek help from your LMC, Plunked Family Centre, lactation consultant or GP. • Never go to bed at night with full breasts. Always feed your baby or express from both breasts before you go to bed. • Get fitted for a maternity bra as late in the pregnancy as possible. Buying a decent maternity bra is money well spent.