It has been interesting reading the mastitis/breast abscess thread.  My own
story:  during my last pregnancy my 2.5 year old *weaned* daughter would
occasionally ask for a BF if we were in the bath together.

At 34 weeks and a day after she had "bf" I became aware of a tender lump on
the lower inner aspect of my left breast.  I applied heat, massage and took
Vit. C. to no avail.  After birthing my baby at 34.5 weeks the lump became
larger and more painful.  Fine needle aspiration under ultrasound control,
revealed thick greeny/yellow pus ie.  an abscess.  Being completely post
natal <g> I refused to have it drained and insisted upon antibiotics in an
attempt to clear it up.  At this time I was told by the surgeon, the
obstetrician and my husband (also a doctor) that antibiotics were virtually
ineffective for abscess treatment and that incision and drainage was the
only option.

The next day I underwent, I & D under gaseous general anaesthetic, had a
drainage tube for three days and breastfed quite happily the whole time
(after ignoring the anaesthetist who told me to express and discard the
next 3 feeds).  It wasn't as traumatic as I had thought and the only real
problem was milk leaking from the drain and wound - easily dealt with by
strategically wearing breast pads.


The pus was cultured and grew staph aureous, sensitive to cephlelexin.


So, abscesses can occur during pregnancy.  As staph aureous is found in the
oral cavity among other places, perhaps my elder daughter was responsible
for providing the bugs which then swam upstream?  My nipples were
completely intact so it is unlikely that the bugs travelled via the blood
stream.  Also, perhaps antibiotics are not suitable treatment for
abscesses.

What do you think?

regards

Trudi Szallasi  RN BN
NMAA BF Counsellor
(west of Brisbane, Australia)