Although I don't have tons of experience with Downs babies, I have had 3 cases over the years and the only common thread is that they all had very tight sucks.  They all clenched their jaws while nursing.  Mom's reported that the baby was "biting".  Two of the three were not aware that the babies had Downs Syndrome at the time.  We used massage of the jawline, warm compresses and gentle talk while nursing to get them to  relax enough to  nurse. Interestingly, most of what I've read talks about hypotonic Downs Babies, while I would classify all three of these babies as hypertonic.

 I know that this is premature because the case in question is probably not going to be in this category, but the post stimulated my thought processes.

 When my 21 year old daughter was born the hospital gave me A&D for sore nipples.  It said right on the tube "for external use only" so I used it as a diaper ointment for her.  One would think we would have learned something new in 21 years!!  I keep these things in mind when mentioning any products I might recommend.  I say something like "We think that XYZ is a good product to try for this right now.  In 5 years there may be something new, but this is what we are recommending today."  This way when she comes back to me in 6 years with her 3rd baby, I don't feel TOO dumb!  I've been in this business a LONG time and have seen LOTS of trends!

 Barbara Leshin-Zucker, IBCLC
 Highland Mills, NY


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