Can't count how many mothers I have encountered who have borrowed or
purchased used Pump In Styles. Even met one who rented one from someone.
Never have I heard of an illness or infection resulting.  The biggest
problem has been  that the pumps tend to last for years, but lose their
effectiveness and mothers don't always recognize this until I offer to put a
guage on the pump to test it when they complain that it doesn't work well or
their supplies go down.  I feel that ethically, I am obliged to tell mothers
that we shouldn't share used pumps - so I do, but I've seen no proof that
they're actually problematic.

On 3/20/07, Diana Graham <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
> I'm interested to hear what other people have to say about sharing Pump in
> Styles between moms, or handing one down, selling it used, etc.  I can
> share
> my personal experience, which is that I have shared/borrowed PISAs many
> times for my own use, and have no concerns about doing it.
>
> I know that Medela states that use by more than one person violates the
> warranty (it's printed right on the pump!), but frankly I am hard pressed
> to
> see how you could possibly transmit anything by sharing the motor - this
> is
> assuming that each user has her own tubing, shields, bottles, etc.  That
> combined with the fact that breastmilk isn't generally considered a bodily
> fluid
> with infection exposure risk (someone correct me if I'm wrong here, with
> the
> arguable exception of HIV) makes me pretty comfortable doing it.
>
> Honestly the policy by Medela sounds to me like they just want to cover
> their
> you-know-whats, and I also wonder if they maintain the stance to encourage
> each person to buy her own, thereby increasing their sales.
>
> FWIW, here's the CDC statement on "What To Do If An Infant Or Child Is
> Mistakenly Fed Another Woman's Expressed Breast Milk," which has
> tangential
> relevance here:
>
> http://www.cdc.gov/breastfeeding/recommendations/other_mothers_milk.htm
>
>
> Diana Graham, MD
> nursing mom, LC-in-training
> from warm(er) NYC, happy that it's Spring!
>
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