Breastfeeding difficulties
| Breastfeeding difficulties | |
|---|---|
| Classification and external resources | |
| Specialty | obstetrics, lactation disorder |
| ICD-10 | O92 |
| ICD-9-CM | 676 |
Breastfeeding difficulties refers to problems that arise from breastfeeding, the feeding of an infant or young child with milk from a woman's breasts. Although babies have a sucking reflex that enables them to suck and swallow milk, and although human breast milk is usually the best source of nourishment for human infants, there are circumstances under which breastfeeding can be problematic, or even, in rare instances, contraindicated.
Difficulties can arise both in connection with the act of breastfeeding and with the health of the nursing infant.
While breastfeeding difficulties are not uncommon, putting the baby to the breast as soon as possible after birth helps to avoid many problems. The policy of the American Academy of Pediatrics on breastfeeding says, "delay weighing, measuring, bathing, needle-sticks, and eye prophylaxis until after the first feeding is completed." Many breastfeeding difficulties can be resolved with proper hospital procedures, properly trained nurses and hospital staff, speech pathologists and lactation consultants. Another source of information is the volunteer-based breastfeeding promotion organization, La Leche League.
A variety of factors and conditions can interfere with successful breastfeeding:
Pain often interferes with successful breastfeeding. It is cited as the second most common cause for the abandonment of exclusive breastfeeding after perceived low milk supply.
Inverted or retracted nipples sometimes make attachment to the breast difficult. These mothers need additional support to feed their babies. Treatment is started after the birth of the baby. The nipple is manually stretched out several times a day. A pump or a plastic syringe is used to draw out the nipple and the baby is then put to the breast.
Breast engorgement is the sense of breast fullness experienced by most women within 36 hours of delivery. Normally, this is a painless sensation of "heaviness". Breastfeeding on demand is the primary way of preventing painful engorgement.
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