I'm working by E-Mail with a mom who is having extreme problems.

Here's her history and her posts to me:

"Baby age=6 weeks
Baby weight=3.2 kg
Birth weight=4 pounds 14 ounces
OtherChildren=1
Question:2 weeks ago, I experiences severe pain on my left breast
characterized by tenderness, swelling, extreme shooting pain, and
difficulty expressing milk. NAturally I thought this was either a bad case
of engorgement or plugged ducts. 2 days later, it transferred to the right
breast thus relieving the left one. This lasted for several days. I
consulted my OB who gave me antibiotics for what she diagnosed as the
beginning of mastitis. The breast was drained after a nursing on the third
day into the antibiotics but recurred 2 days later. The doctor then advised
me to go to a surgeon as the pain was more intense this time and lasted 2
days. The surgeon continued the medication and again I was relieved as the
breast was drained after another nursing. Again, 2 days later, the breast
swelled again. Same symptoms. It appears that the condition comes and goes
every 2-3 days. I went back to the surgeon and the OB who both advised me
that the cause of the pain and swelling is the!
  milk that is stuck in the ducts. THey can't explain why this is so but
they advised me to stop breastfeeding all together and put me on medication
to stop the milk production. I have also been advised to stop nursing and
expressing milk manually. They claim that the failure of the breast to be
drained will result in infection and perhaps abscess. The pain is extreme
and prevents me from sleeping. I also noticed that my milk supply has been
reduced considerably.

My questions: what is the cause of the swelling and pain? A plugged duct?
If so why is it recurring every 2-3 days? Is there anything I can do other
than what the doctors recommend --- stopping the milk production? If I
don't stop the milk production, what practices can I do to prevent the
plugging of the duct and/or engorgement. Is the shooting pain normal? "
**************

Any ideas????

Barbara Petzoldt,  LLLL,  Wic Peer Counselor
Fenton MO
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