Mastitis… A whole body experience
Mastitis is not just a breast problem, it’s a whole body problem.
Mastitis is a common and distressing maternal postpartum condition, but the relationship between: (1) mastitis timing and antibiotic treatment and; (2) breastfeeding outcomes and postnatal mental health, is somewhat unclear.
The Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Cohort Study (MoBa), based on 79,985 mother-infant dyads looked at the incidence of mastitis and treatment with antibiotics in first 6 months postpartum. The MoBa study wanted to investigate the impact of mastitis timing and antibiotic treatment on breastfeeding practices and postnatal mental health.
Women were classified according to self-reported mastitis within first month ('early') or 1-6 months ('later') postpartum and antibiotic treatment. Breastfeeding outcomes included (1) predominant or (2) any breastfeeding or (3) abrupt breastfeeding cessation, until 6 months postpartum. Maternal mental health was also assessed by self-report at 6 months postpartum.
The results being:
The incidence of mastitis was 18.8%, with 36.8% reporting treatment with antibiotics …that’s no small percentage.
Women reporting early mastitis were less likely to report predominant breastfeeding and any breastfeeding for 6 months than women who did not report mastitis…so mastitis can potentially derail a breastfeeding journey.
The women reporting early mastitis were also more likely to report abrupt breastfeeding cessation - almost 40% more likely!
Late-onset mastitis was not associated with poorer breastfeeding outcomes.
Among women reporting mastitis, the risk of abrupt breastfeeding cessation was higher in those also reported antibiotic use.
Mastitis was associated with an increased risk of mental health problems postpartum.
(Link to study: MoBa Study)
Here at Full Circle, we understand the impact of mastitis on new mothers and provide timely holistic support to enable women to meet their breastfeeding goals. We consider breastfeeding support ‘urgent care’, and the MoBa study exemplifies exactly why is it urgent - as poorly managed mastitis can derail an entire breastfeeding journey.
We have supported so many mothers with mastitis over the years at Full Circle, and whilst the MoBa study has very compelling results with a very large cohort of women, we do not see the same level of detrimental outcomes of mastitis as the study found. What we have seen is that by triaging our referrals quickly and providing holistic support that includes consideration of the mental health impacts of mastitis, we can enable women to recover quickly and continue their breastfeeding journey.