Michelle Leifur Reid wrote:
> I am working with a mom who went to the ER with a mild (IMO) case of
> mastitis.  The ER doctor gave her antibiotics and then told her not
> to breastfeed off that breast until the infection was cleared.  He
> told her to pump only.  She questioned what he told her but he said
> that he had just read a "brand new study on the internet" about how
> babies shouldn't nurse off an infected breast and that pumping was
> really better for emptying the breast.  I have done an exhaustive
> search (and I reckon myself a fairly advanced internet user) I have
> come up totally empty on any "new study"  I actually doubt there is a
> study as I have had this same ER doctor prescribe meds to moms that
> were contraindicated to breastfeeding but yet telling them that it
> was ok to nurse while using them.

Not surprisingly, I know of no such study and this sounds like bull. :-)
However, it just so happens that last night I was looking at a certain
"pregnancy" book (hint: WTE) that is notorious for its poor information
about breastfeeding. (I have to protect my reputation here: I was only
reading it in preparation for a letter I'm writing to a local hospital
that's giving out the book to pregnant women.) Its information on "Breast
Infection" was quite bad. Hours after reading it, I read Dr. Greene's Web
site (mentioned here before) and found information that was taken
practically verbatim from this section. After I stopped to write him a
somewhat irate email about good and poor sources of information, I read your
email. Serendipity. Um, anyway:

The authors have two paragraphs about breast infections, then they go on to
discuss breast abscesses (which the mother you mentioned didn't seem to
have, from what you wrote). Something tells me the friendly ER doc got ahold
of this information -- what he said is so similar to what's written here.
Perhaps it was duplicated on someone's Web site ... either that or the doc
is really getting (!!!) information about breastfeeding from this particular
book. It says:
"Breastfeeding with the affected breast must be halted, and a breast pump
should be used regularly to empty it until healing is complete and
breastfeeding can be resumed. In the meantime, nursing can continue on the
unaffected breast."

BTW, has anyone here done or read a review of the WTE books with regard to
the breastfeeding information? JHL, perhaps? I'd love to have something to
refer to. If not, I'll create my less-than-glowing review from scratch.

Janice Berry
Westerville, OH

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