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Lactostasis is the retention of milk in the excretory ducts of the mammary gland of a nursing mother. One or more ducts can be clogged. Most often, this condition occurs in women who are breastfeeding for the first time. Lactostasis develops mainly 10-14 days after birth.
Although each woman’s breast has its own anatomical features, its internal structure is identical for all representatives of the beautiful half of humanity. Inside the mammary gland is a glandular tissue, which is divided into lobes. There are about 15-20 of them. Each of these large lobes is divided into smaller lobules that pass into the excretory ducts leading to the nipple. When in any of the ducts there is an obstacle to the normal exit of milk, this provokes the development of lactostasis. It begins due to the fact that the mammary gland cannot be completely emptied.
The development of lactostasis can be provoked by the wrong technique of feeding the child, violation of the feeding regime, poor-quality pumping of milk. Favor the stagnation of milk stress, as well as hypothermia of the chest. Equally important is the quality of the bra worn by a nursing mother. If the breast is constantly squeezed and tightened, then blockage of the mammary glands cannot be avoided.
By itself, lactostasis is not dangerous either for a woman or for an infant. However, if you do not get rid of it in time, it can lead to serious complications.
You need to start treatment as soon as possible. The lack of adequate therapy for 3-4 days will lead to the fact that a woman will develop mastitis. Its purulent form requires surgical intervention. The fact is that with a long stay of milk in the mammary gland, fermentation processes are triggered in it. This leads to the accumulation of serous exudate and the development of non-purulent inflammation at first. But in such conditions, pathogenic bacteria begin to multiply very quickly. As their number increases, the inflammatory process will intensify, capture more and more new areas of healthy tissue. After a short time, suppuration will join.
Lactostasis is not terrible for those women who carefully monitor the standing of their own breasts, properly feed the child, empty the mammary gland in a quality and timely manner.
Causes of Lactostasis
Lactostasis develops due to a violation of the outflow of milk from the mammary glands.
Most often, this leads to non-compliance with the feeding technique and poor-quality pumping of breast milk:
Feeding time is too short. The fact is that not every baby in a short time is able to satisfy the nutritional needs of his own body. Feeding time must be selected individually. If a woman takes her breast too early, as soon as he stops sucking vigorously and willingly, this will lead to insufficient emptying of the breast, because there is too much milk left in it. As a result, lactostasis will develop.
During the feeding process, you can not put pressure on the chest with your hand.
If a woman puts her baby to her breast too infrequently, this can lead to the fact that too much milk will accumulate in the mammary gland. The belief of some mothers that it is necessary to wait for the moment until the baby is very hungry is incorrect. The baby will drink as much milk as his body needs: no more and no less. Unfinished excess will remain in the milk ducts, leading to congestion.
If a woman takes the wrong position during the feeding process, or holds the baby incorrectly, this can also lead to lactostasis.
Too active expression of milk will contribute to the fact that it will begin to be produced in larger volumes than the child can consume.
Too early refusal of breastfeeding can provoke lactostasis.
No less dangerous is the complete rejection of breastfeeding.
Of course, these are not all the reasons why lactostasis can develop.
Other factors provoking its occurrence can be called:
Features of the anatomical structure of the milk ducts (too narrow passages, flat nipples);
Incorrectly chosen underwear: a tight bra or refusal to wear it;
Night rest in an inappropriate position, namely on the stomach;
Frequent stress.
How to understand that you have lactostasis, and not mastitis?
Knowing the symptoms of lactostasis will distinguish it from mastitis.
Among the signs indicating stagnation of milk, there are:
Breast augmentation in size, its asymmetric shape.
The appearance of tubercles in the mammary gland, uneven density.
Sensation of fullness of the mammary gland from the inside, soreness when touched.
Violation of the exit of milk from the breast: it can be splashed, stand out in drops, or be completely absent.
Already after a few days, lactostasis can turn into mastitis (provided there is no high-quality treatment). This condition is extremely dangerous and requires immediate medical attention.
The difference in the symptoms of lactostasis and mastitis:
| stagnant processes | Mastitis |
Skin on the mammary gland | Color not changed | Of red color |
local temperature | Within normal limits | High (chest hot to the touch) |
Body temperature | Normal or slightly elevated. Always stabilizes after emptying the breast. | High |
General well-being | Unchanged | Violated: there is weakness, lethargy, increased fatigue, headaches and muscle pain |
Condition of the lymph nodes | Without any change | Enlarged in size |
Risk factors for the development of lactostasis
There are risk factors that can provoke lactostasis:
The child was given milk formula in the maternity hospital. Drinking milk from a bottle is much easier than from a mother’s breast, especially since in the first days after the birth of the baby, the sucking apparatus of the crumbs is not strong enough. For these reasons, you should not hope that the baby will be able to empty the female breast immediately after birth.
Starting from 3-4 days, a woman’s colostrum is replaced by milk. It arrives in significant volumes and the baby is not able to suck it out completely.
By about 10 days from the start of lactation, the milk becomes more fatty, which increases the risk of its stagnation in the ducts of the mammary gland.
The tortuosity of the milk passages and their narrowness is a risk factor in terms of the development of lactostasis.
Pressing on the mammary gland with a finger during feeding or a bra that is too tight can provoke the development of lactostasis.
10 tips to avoid lactostasis
The following tips will help you avoid congestion in the mammary glands:
The newborn needs to be applied to the breast often, choosing the correct position for feeding.
A few minutes after feeding, it is necessary to express the unfinished milk of the baby.
If there is too much milk, then you can give the child 2 feedings in a row on the same breast. This will allow you to regulate its production.
The breast during the feeding process must be supported, but it is strictly forbidden to pinch it with your fingers or put pressure on it.
Underwear should be not only of high quality, but also comfortable.
During sleep, lie on your side.
It is important to avoid injury to the chest.
Before each feeding process, the mammary gland should be washed with warm water.
The chest should always be dry and clean. If milk leaks, you should use special liners.
Cracks in the nipples are the entrance gate for infection. Therefore, they need to be treated qualitatively and in a timely manner.
It is important to remember that adequate rest and sleep is a prerequisite for maintaining the health of not only the mother, but also the child. Stressful situations contribute to the fact that the vascular tone increases and milk comes out with certain difficulties.
The baby best draws milk from those milk lobules that are located in front of his nostrils. Therefore, you should alternate postures during feeding in such a way that the baby’s nose is constantly in a different position relative to the chest.
The most optimal positions for feeding:
The baby is located on a pillow that lies on the woman’s lap. The head of the crumbs should be held in such a way as if there is a ball in the hand.
Lying on the bed with a jack.
For a woman, a competent psychological attitude is very important, which will make life easier for herself and the little man. To do this, you need to spend as much time as possible in the fresh air, eat healthy food, and take walks with the baby. If a woman notices the first signs of lactostasis in herself, then they need to be stopped in a timely manner, without ignoring the presence of a problem.
It is necessary to express milk in the case when the baby does not completely empty the chest.
The following recommendations can help prevent the development of milk stagnation:
The mammary gland should not be in the cold, but it should not be overheated either.
The bra should support the chest without pinching it.
If cracks appear on the nipples, then you need to get rid of them.
During lactation, the cleanliness of the mammary gland must be monitored with particular care.
[Video] Lactostasis, what to do?
Is there a specific treatment for lactostasis?
Specific measures for the treatment of lactostasis exist. To get rid of the problem, it is necessary to normalize the outflow of milk from the mammary gland. Changing the feeding regimen and frequent correct pumping can help with this.
The optimal feeding regimen is when the baby is applied to the breast every 2 hours, at least. First you need to offer the baby the breast where stagnation has formed. Before feeding, you need to warm it up by standing under a warm shower or applying a warm compress. To prepare a compress, you need to moisten a cloth in warm water and wrap it around the mammary gland, leaving it for 10 minutes. The heat will allow the milk ducts to expand and the milk to flow through them more easily.
Breast massage is another method of treating lactostasis. It is good to perform it before feeding or before pumping.
In no case should you refuse pumping, because it is this method that is the first priority in helping women with milk stasis. After expressing, the child should be offered the breast, and then a cool compress should be applied to it. This will reduce swelling and relieve pain.
It is important to remember that a healthy breast needs quality care no less than one in which stagnation has occurred. It also needs to be emptied in a timely manner and washed well.
It is not recommended to express milk too often. Three times a day is enough to get rid of excess milk. After the stagnation is stopped, pumping should be abandoned, as it provokes excess milk production.
Some women begin to take various medications on their own to get rid of lactostasis. This can be quite dangerous. For example, applying compresses with alcohol or camphor oil to the breasts can cause the breasts to become inflamed and the milk to stop flowing altogether. In addition, camphor oil can get into the milk, and with it into the baby’s body, which will adversely affect his health.
If a woman has cracks on her nipples, then you should try to speed up their healing with the help of an ointment. A doctor can help you pick it up. The imposition of drugs with an antibacterial component in the absence of an inflammatory reaction is not appropriate.
When in 2-3 days it is not possible to get rid of the stagnation of milk on your own, you should consult a doctor.
Answers to popular questions about lactostasis
What is the main cause of milk stasis? We can safely call the main cause of lactostasis the improper organization of breastfeeding. The development of congestion is facilitated by incorrect postures taken by a woman during feeding, poor-quality grip of the nipple by the baby. Equally dangerous is the insufficient intake of water by a nursing mother, which contributes to an increase in the viscosity of milk. Risk factors are clogged milk ducts and long breaks in feeding.
How to distinguish lactostasis from mastitis? Breast engorgement and lactostasis respond with uncomfortable sensations in the chest, but it will be very painful only with mastitis. A woman can cope with stagnation on her own, without medical help, but only on condition that she acts correctly.
So, the main differences that are embedded in the concepts themselves:
Breast engorgement is considered to be its overflow with milk. It is accompanied by a feeling of fullness of the mammary gland from the inside. After feeding or pumping, the condition returns to normal.
With lactostasis, milk does not leave the gland, or it comes out partially, since one or several lobules are blocked. The chest becomes painful, and in the place where the stagnation has formed, a tumor forms. There may be slight redness of the skin of the chest.
Mastitis is the infection of the mammary gland by pathogenic bacteria. This condition is accompanied by an increase in body temperature, the appearance of severe pain. It is forbidden to treat mastitis without the help of a specialist. Moreover, the therapy should take place under the supervision of a surgeon. Laktostasis after 3-4 days will definitely turn into mastitis, if you do not get rid of milk stagnation in time.
How to properly organize breastfeeding in order to prevent the development of lactostasis? Breastfeeding experts recommend breastfeeding on demand. This will allow you to qualitatively empty it and do without decanting. You can feed the baby even every 10 minutes. It will be necessary to express milk only in the case when a woman leaves the house.
What is the best position for feeding? The correct posture for lactostasis is the one in which the child lies with his chin to the formed tubercle of stagnation. At the same time, a woman should not be tense. Postures should be constantly alternated: hold the baby on your arm, fit with a jack, sit or lie down. Regular posture changes help prevent stagnation.
How should a baby latch on properly? When the breast is properly grasped, the mother will see the baby’s tongue, while his lips turn outward, and the areola of the breast is in the mouth. During the baby’s sucking movements, pharynxes will be heard, the child’s mouth is wide open, and the chin is pressed to the mammary gland.
What manipulations can lead to the development of lactostasis? Sometimes medical staff in maternity hospitals give the woman the wrong advice, for example, they advise her to hold her breast near the baby’s nose, pressing on it with her fingers. In fact, such manipulations can add to the stagnation of milk.
What can not be done so as not to provoke stagnation? To minimize the risks of developing lactostasis, you need to fully relax. You should refuse to feed the baby with a mixture, you can not often give the baby water to drink, you should not express milk without any apparent need and take a long night break during feeding.
How to relieve the symptoms of lactostasis? If a woman has milk stasis, then you should try to put the baby to the breast as often as possible. Sometimes it is enough to simply remove the white grain on the nipple, thereby eliminating the external blockage of the duct. To cope with internal blockage, only regular suckling of the breast, or expressing milk with a high-quality breast pump, can only. Before you start feeding your baby, you can take a warm shower, drink tea, and do a light breast massage. Cracks in the nipples will heal faster if ointments with a regenerating effect are applied to them. However, a doctor should recommend them.
Is decanting and warming the breast useful? Sometimes you can come across stories about how midwives kneaded a woman’s breasts with rough hand movements, and supposedly this relieved lactostasis. In fact, any hard massage can cause serious harm to the mammary gland. In such a situation, a rupture of a lobule or duct is not excluded, which will only worsen the condition. If you warm the chest, it will provoke an influx of milk, which means it will increase its stagnation.
Can I ask my husband to suck my breasts? No. Breast sucking by a man does not lead to the production of oxytocin, which means that it will not allow the ducts to open. In addition, millions of bacteria live in the mouth of an adult, and among them there may be Staphylococcus aureus, which provokes the development of mastitis.
What are the prohibitions for lactostasis? During lactostasis, a woman should not be allowed to be thirsty; it is also forbidden to apply alcohol and camphor compresses. The chest should not be allowed to be squeezed, for example, with bandages or bandages. This will lead to disruption of the normal blood flow in the chest and cause complications.
Sometimes doctors themselves give bad advice, so who do you listen to? As a rule, surgeons with lactostasis advise to stop breastfeeding, pediatricians also insist on transferring the child to artificial mixtures. It is important to find a specialist who will fight to the last for the baby to receive breast milk, but not to the detriment of the mother’s health.