Perceived breast milk insufficiency in mothers of neonates hospitalized in neonatal intensive care unit.

Objective. a) To study the frequency of perceived breast milk insufficiency in mothers of hospitalized neonates. b) To assess subsequent duration of exclusive breast feeding and growth (upto three months) in neonates whose mothers perceived breast milk insufficiency. Methods. Neonates whose mothers were willing to breastfeed their babies were included in the study. Their breastfeeding status was assessed and the mother’s perception of breastfeeding was elicited as per WHO guidelines. In mothers who perceived breast milk insufficiency (crisis group),causes for such a perception were looked into. Mothers were regularly counseled to breastfeed the infant After discharge the mother infant dyad were followed up for three months and babies evaluated for weight, length and head circumference. Results. Three hundred and seven neonates and their mothers fulfilling the inclusion criteria were enrolled in the study. Perceived breast milk insufficiency was present in 208 (68%) mothers. Common reasons for such a perception were irrational. In the crisis group, 35% mothers had preterm babies as compared to 16% in the non crisis group (p =0.001). One hundred and fifty three mothers (73.33%) in the crisis group had breast milk sodium levels>16 mmol/L as compared to 12 mothers (12.12%) in the non crisis group (p 0.001). Micturition <6 times/24 hours was reported in 166 (83%) mothers in crisis group as compared to 18 (18.1%) mothers in non crisis group. All mothers who perceived breast milk insufficiency could be helped by lactation management and exclusively breastfed their babies. All infants were exclusively breastfed at discharge and at three month follow up. The growth of the infants was satisfactory in the crisis group at 3 months follow up. Conclusion. The Present study suggests that lactation failure following delayed initiation of breastfeeding can be countered by subsequent intensive counselling. Emphasis is required on counselling for breastfeeding in primary neonatal care.

Patterns and frequency of female breast lesions encountered at secondary level of care: hospital records-based study

To describe the histopathological pattern of female breast lesions encountered at secondary level of care in, Saudi Arabia. It is a retrospective, hospital record-based descriptive study. All histopathology records for patients attended King Fahad Hospital in Hofuf, Al Hassa between January 2001 and December 2006, were revised and compiled using a structured compilation form. nine hundred-fifty four [954] histopathology reports were included Data regarding type of specimens, age, laterality of the lesions and the prominent cellular morphology were analyzed; the Data were expressed in proportions, percentage and other descriptive measures. The Malignant lesions in the form of infiltrating ductal carcinoma were the most dominant lesions where 62% diagnosed before the age of 50 years

A 12-month lactation clinic experience in Uganda

A review of case histories of mother-infant pairs who attended a lactation clinic between January and December; 1989 is presented. The results show that the majority of mothers consulting the clinic perceive their lactation problems as 'insufficient breast milk production'. Factors which might have contributed to early lactation failure include: delayed initiation of breast feeding; use of prelacteal feeds; infrequent breast feeds by day and night; and early supplementation. The latter was especially common in this clinic sample: 69.6 per cent of infants were on regular supplementation by 4 months of age. The need is stressed for research into such breast feeding failures; revitalize community-based breast feeding support; as well as assessing the knowledge; attitude; and practices of health workers concerning breast feeding