Dear Katheleen:

As I said, we have no answer for that yet. Actually, there was no
breastfeeding mother among the suspected or probable SARS cases up to now
in Taiwan.

If she is a suspected cases with fever and cough, she will be quarantened.
If the baby has no symptom at that time, he will be separted from the
mother according to our protocol at present. (I just think it's somewhat
like the condition when the mother has active TB with less than two weeks
of anti-TB medication. Mother has to be separated from her baby for fear of
infection through close contact. Will you suggest mother to express her
milk and give to her baby in this condition?)

If the mother still has energy to breastfeed her baby or express her milk,
perhaps we can give her some possibility and let her make her own decision.

1.The breastmilk may contain some anti-SARS Ab that she already made which
may protect the baby.
2.The breastmilk may also contain virus with some possibility to infect the
baby.

No one know the exact possibility or risk of each statement.

If the SARS is purely infected through respiratory tract, I will feel much
comfortable with the first information. However, some of our cases has GI
symptoms and the virus has been isolated from the stool.

So, what I had posted is really a personal and tentative opinion. If
breastfeeding proved to be safer than artifical feeding in SARS epedemic, I
won't be surprise. I think I should put the possibility of protecting baby
into my suggestion.

Thank you for your suggestion.

Chao-Huei

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