Lisa--

I, too, have concerns about Medela's new breastpump.  I received info on it not
as a rental station but in a Sanvita mailing.  When I questioned my sales rep
about it I was told that it cycles 48-50 times/minute, the maximum pressure was
only 200 (vs. 230 in the others, I believe), and the lifespan was somewhere
inbetween the mini-electric and the Lactina.  It is intended to be competitive
with the Nurture.  I can't imagine that insurance would cover it (since I have
trouble getting coverage for a few days of rental for my patients much less a
fairly expensive purchase).  However, I think it's likely to sell better through
catalog or retail than through LC's, so has a good chance of cutting into rental
business.

MY main concern is how well will it maintain milk supply?  I keep close contact
with the mothers in my Sanvita account and find that many really motivated
mothers have trouble maintaining their milk supply long-term (6-12 months) if
they work full-time.  My sales rep assured me that this pump was being marketed
to mothers "with an established milk-supply", but if a fair share of my moms
can't do it with a Lactina, this promises to be much worse.

Becky Krumwiede, RN, IBCLC
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