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Wed, 1 Jul 1998 10:56:21 -0400 |
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To : Mary Kay
Re : Radioactive Iodine-131
Doses of I-131 sufficient to ablate or destroy thyroid tissue are most
certainly high enough to injure a breastfed infant and potentially the
breast tissue. About 40% of the dose will transfer into human milk, and
about 45% will transfer to the thyroid. Although the published literature
varies, it is my personal opinion, that a breastfeeding mother should
discontinue breastfeeding for at least 2 weeks prior to treatment with I-131
so that she will have time to dry up. Iodine can concentrate in breast
tissue and the radiation dose to the breast can be excessively high.
I know that some references say that one can begin breastfeeding at after 14
days, but I believe these are wrong, as they did not take into account the
amount of radiation in the "trough" of the curve, which can be high. I
would suggest you read the references listed in my book.
Regards
Tom Hale, R.Ph., Ph.D.
http://neonatal.ttuhsc.edu/lact/
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