Hi all,
Just want to jump in on this discussion, although late.  I really wanted to
think about my answer before I wrote.
If you look at the specifications for a Pump in Style Advance, they are quite
similar to a Symphony rental breast pump.  The pattern and rate are the same.
 The difference seems to be the maximum vacuum, which is 235mmHg for a PIS
Advance, and 240mmHg for a Symphony.  That seems, to me, to be a negligible
difference.  In the case of being afraid that your rental will not come back (and
I know this is a HUGE problem in the Boston area), the PIS Advance seems to be
a pretty good alternative, if you can get the insurer or mother to pay for
it.  In the case of establishing and maintaining a milk supply for a baby who
cannot, most mothers need a good hospital-grade breastpump.  Please, I
understand that hands were invented long before Medela and Ameda, but in this
geographical area, it can be a challenge to get mothers to touch their own breasts,
never mind hand-express long term.
I have been fortunate enough to be involved in a research study involving
Paula Meier, Nancy Hurst and Barbara Ackerman, which looks at milk supply and
breast emptying with the Symphony pump.  There were several patterns tested,
including the Classic and the Symphony patterns, with mothers of preterm infants
under 1250 grams, or under 30 weeks.  As you all know, these are the mothers
with which we have the biggest challenge to establish and maintain milk supply.
We have completed the study and I can't get into the results, but stay tuned,
they should be forthcoming.
The one thing I can tell you is that every mother I tested found this pump to
be more comfortable than others they had used, specifically the Classic.
Comfort goes a long way when getting a mother to pump frequently is involved.
I'd like to suggest that we have this particular conversation again when the
research results are reported.  If the Symphony pattern does as good a job of
maintaining milk supply as the Classic pattern, then maybe we can make the leap
that the PIS Advance would be a good alternative to a rental, when a rental is
not feasible.
Please note that I have received NO financial reward for being part of this
study.
The last thing I'd like to bring up is that several hospital-based LCs in my
area have been recommending an Ameda Purely Yours for initiating and
maintaining milk supply for mothers of NICU babies.  I'd like to ask if there is any
research out there that supports that recommendation?
Thanks for reading this.
Maureen Allen RN, BSN, IBCLC
NICU Lactation Consultant
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Boston, MA

             ***********************************************

To temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail
To start it again: set lactnet mail (or digest)
To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet
All commands go to [log in to unmask]

The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(R)
mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html