What is postpartum mastitis?
Postpartum mastitis is a common disease in the puerperium, mostly acute mastitis, and often occurs in nursing women 3 to 4 weeks after delivery. After 6 months, the baby starts teething, and the nipple is vulnerable to damage during this period, so care should be taken to prevent it; and during the weaning period, we should be alert to the occurrence of acute mastitis. The causative agents of acute mastitis are mostly Glucosococcus aureus and Streptococcus haemolyticus, which are caused by fissures or bloody infections of the nipples.
Symptoms of postpartum mastitis
1. stasis mastitis.
Occurs in the early puerperium (often about 1 week after delivery). This is due to the lack of experience in feeding and nursing children, which can easily lead to stagnation of milk, not emptied on time. Patients with postpartum mastitis feel varying degrees of swelling and pain in both breasts, and have a moderately elevated body temperature (about 38.5°C). Examination of the breasts is full, the surface is slightly red (congested), and pressure is painful, but after sucking out the milk, the symptoms can mostly disappear, so it is generally not considered true mastitis. However, if the nipple is not treated in time, or if the nipple is small and is sucked hard by the newborn, the stagnant milk and sweat can be contaminated by septic bacteria, and the symptoms of postpartum mastitis can easily appear. Therefore, it is necessary to empty the excess milk sweat and pay attention to nipple cleaning.
2, purulent mastitis.
Septic mastitis is mostly due to infection by staphylococci or streptococci through ruptured nipples. As mentioned earlier, postpartum milk stagnation, if not emptied in time, can easily lead to infection and thus cause postpartum mastitis. When bacteria invade the milk ducts and continue to invade the parenchyma, various types of septicemia may develop.
The causes of postpartum mastitis
1, poor drainage of milk, stagnation in the breast. The main reason for the onset of postpartum mastitis is the stagnation of milk and poor drainage. The reason for the retention of milk may be the incorrect sucking position of the baby, resulting in the milk not being completely sucked out. If the baby cannot suck the milk, he or she will suck harder and harder, which will break the mother’s nipple and cause bacterial infections and bacteria to enter the breast tissue. In addition, the mother used her fingers to squeeze her breasts when she was breastfeeding, which will also hinder the flow of milk.
2. Neglecting nipple maintenance during pregnancy, and making the nipple skin epidermis weak and vulnerable. As the skin resistance of the nipples of new mothers is weak, it is easy to cause damage under the baby’s sucking, so that the milk is stagnant and bacteria invade.
3, some new moms have poor nipple development, such as nipple invagination, also hindered the breastfeeding process.
4, the new mother’s milk contains more exfoliated epithelial cells, more likely to cause blockage of the milk ducts, so that the milk stagnation aggravated.
How to prevent postpartum mastitis
Before delivery
1, at the end of pregnancy should be 75% alcohol rubbing nipples, or wash with warm water to enhance the flexibility and resistance of the breast skin. Squeeze out the fat plugs in the milk ducts.
2, nipple invagination, before pregnancy need to squeeze out the nipple by hand, massage and pull to correct it.
After delivery
1, to ensure the correct posture of breastfeeding and the correct way of sucking baby. Do not let the baby only contain the nipple and cause nipple cracking, so that bacteria along the cracked nipple into the mammary ducts cause acute mastitis.
2, when breastfeeding must let the baby eat empty one side of the breast and then eat the other side, do not alternate between the two breasts, in case the baby can not eat milk for a long time caused by the accumulation of milk caused by acute mastitis. If the mother has enough milk and the baby is full on one side, and the other side is bloated, make sure to squeeze out the milk from the bloated side of the breast and do not leave it in the breast to prevent the formation of hard knots that can cause acute mastitis. The same time to develop the habit of regular breastfeeding, not to let the baby sleep with the nipple.
3, to sleep on the side and lie on your back alternately, forbid the mother to sleep on her back. The actual fact is that you can find a lot of people who are not able to get a good deal on this.
4. Do not wear a bra with a steel bra. The new mother should not wear a bra with a steel bra, it is best to wear a special breastfeeding bra to prevent the bra with a steel bra from squeezing the breast ducts causing localized milk stagnation causing acute mastitis.
5. Pay attention to your own hygiene and cleanliness. It is best to scrub with water before and after feeding your baby, and then wipe your nipples clean with a hygienic towel to keep them clean.
6. You should not be too eager to promote milk after giving birth. It is not a good idea to supplement nutrition after delivery. Fish soup, meat soup or chicken soup to help milk production must be consumed in moderation according to the amount of milk secretion. This is because some new mothers start to produce milk when their milk
The new mother’s milk ducts are not yet open, and the newborn is weak in sucking, so if a large amount of milk is secreted, it will easily cause the milk to swell and clump, causing pain to the new mother. Therefore, you should start with a small amount of milk-boosting food after delivery.
7. During the pus-forming period of mastitis, you should eat less fishy soup with the effect of “milk” to avoid aggravating the condition. It is advisable to eat more vegetables and fruits that have a clearing effect, such as tomatoes, green vegetables, loofah, cucumber, green beans, fresh lotus root, kumquat cake, etc. Kelp has the effect of softening and dispersing the knots, you can eat more. At the same time to maintain emotional well-being.
8, pay attention to dietary regimen: it is appropriate to eat light and nutritious food, eat more fresh vegetables and fruits, such as tomatoes, loofah, cucumber, fresh lotus root, oranges, etc., avoid spicy, stimulating, meat and greasy products.
Food therapy
(1) 1 pig’s foot, 25 grams of yellow cauliflower, stewed and eaten without garnish, once a day. It is used in the early stage of mastitis when pus has not formed.
(2) 1 pigeon, 30 grams of astragalus, 30 grams of wolfberry. The pigeon was washed, astragalus, wolfberry wrapped in gauze and stewed with the pigeon, cooked to remove the dregs, eat pigeon meat and drink soup. Used for recovery period after mastitis ulceration.
(3) 100 grams of round-grained rice and 50 grams of dandelion. Decoct water to extract juice from dandelion, add japonica rice and boil the porridge, divide it into portions daily. It is used for those whose pus is exhausted after mastitis has broken down and the residual heat has not subsided.
Topical treatment
(1) 60 grams of mangosteen, honey, make a paste and put it on the affected breast once a day for 3-5 days.
(2) 20 white onions, 1 egg white, 15 grams of sugar. Mash the white onion with honey and sugar, heat and melt, then apply to the affected breast while it is hot, so as not to burn the skin, and use for several days.
(3) 30 grams of five times seeds, grinded with vinegar, make a paste and put it on the affected breast, fix it with gauze, once a day.
(4) Three scallions and dandelion are pounded together and applied to the affected area or drunk in soup.
Other self-treatment
(1) At the beginning, a hot towel can be applied to the affected breast (without burning the skin), and then applied again after it is cold, for 10 minutes, squeezing the breast with your hand, pinching and releasing it for dozens of times. Has been ulcerated is prohibited.
(2) Massage therapy: first use a hot wet towel outside, then massage the breast with your hand in a clockwise direction to promote the smooth flow of the milk ducts. Has been ulcerated is prohibited.
(3) chaps are very deep and painful, or have not been improving, stop direct breastfeeding, using a breast pump to suck out the milk to feed the baby. This period of time to seize the time to treat. When the symptoms are mild, it is best to wear nipple caps for breastfeeding, and at the end of breastfeeding, disinfect the nipples with boric acid cotton and cover them with sterilized gauze.
Do you have to stop breastfeeding if you have mastitis?
When acute mastitis occurs, you should not stop breastfeeding because stopping breastfeeding not only affects infant feeding, but also increases the chance of milk stagnation. Therefore, when you feel pain, swelling or even localized skin redness in your breasts, not only should you not stop breastfeeding, but you should also breastfeed your children and let them suck up as much milk as possible from your breasts. When the breast is locally septic, you should stop breastfeeding on the affected breast and drain the milk with the usual milking technique or breast pump to promote the smooth discharge of milk. At the same time, the child can still be allowed to breastfeed from the other healthy breast. Only after the infection is severe or the abscess is cut and drained should breastfeeding be stopped completely and active measures should be taken to return the milk to the breast according to medical advice.