LACTNET Archives

Lactation Information and Discussion

LACTNET@COMMUNITY.LSOFT.COM

Options: Use Forum View

Use Monospaced Font
Show Text Part by Default
Show All Mail Headers

Message: [<< First] [< Prev] [Next >] [Last >>]
Topic: [<< First] [< Prev] [Next >] [Last >>]
Author: [<< First] [< Prev] [Next >] [Last >>]

Print Reply
Subject:
From:
Cathy Bargar <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Lactation Information and Discussion <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Tue, 3 Aug 1999 11:23:38 -0400
Content-Type:
text/plain
Parts/Attachments:
text/plain (48 lines)
Had a question last night that I wasn't really able to answer adequately, so
will put it out to you all.

Mom, nsg 14 mo old ad lib without problem, co-sleeping, says baby (who has 2
bottom teeth) while nsg in their sleep sort of clamped down on breast. Mom
reflexively pulled away, instead of breaking suction first, with the result
that baby's teeth broke the skin and, because she was pulling away, sort of
dragged & scraped her breast around nipple. Understandable - she knows how
to prevent this in future. Very painful, though.

Her real concern is that the breast feels "like it's bruised" NOT at the
site of the bite, but way back, towards where her breast joins her chest
wall. Nothing visible, no lumps, no redness or visible inflammation, no sx.
of mastitis or plugged duct there. It's just very tender (in addition to the
breast being very painful where the abrasion is). I don't know what this
is - my thinking was that maybe she could be developing a plug or block back
from the nipple/areola because of the damage from the bite & consequent
reluctance to fully drain that breast. This had just happened a few hours
before the mom called me, and she's aware of the need to drain the breast
well and had cont'd to nurse on affected side (although may try pumping if
that's less painful). She's concerned about an infection. I didn't really
know what to advise, other than stuff she was already aware of like
continuing to drain breast, ways to avoid this happening again, etc. Ended
up suggesting she watch it & if there were any further sx. overnight or
during the next couple of days (redness, swelling, lump, malaise, fever,
etc.) to have it checked; we spent quite a while figuring out who would be
likely to be the best person to examine it & prescribe if need be, and
settled on the BF-friendly (and knowledgeable) nurse practitioner at her
ped's office.

Anybody met up with something like this before? She was kinda freaked out
about having had a "human bite" - I couldn't get too worked up about that
aspect of it, since it's her own nursing baby, and recommended she try
applying a little breast milk to the site (vs. neosporin, which is what she
was thinking). Could it be that an infection is deveolping, but that since
it was only maybe 5 hours or so since it happened wasn't really "showing"
yet? Should I have sent her to the emergency room? (Can't imagine that
anybody there would have done anything more than shake their head, but they
might have given her antibiotics.)

Cathy Bargar, RN, IBCLC Ithaca NY

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

ATOM RSS1 RSS2