Treatments for breast abscesses in breastfeeding women

This paper aims to assess the effects of different treatments for the management of breast abscesses in breastfeeding women

Abstract

The benefits of breastfeeding are well known, and the World Health Organization recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months of life and continuing breastfeeding to age 2. However, many women stop breastfeeding due to lactational breast abscesses. A breast abscess is a localised accumulation of infected fluid in breast tissue. Abscesses are commonly treated with antibiotics, incision and drainage (I&D) or ultrasound-guided needle aspiration, but there is no consensus on the optimal treatment.

This paper aims to assess the effects of different treatments for the management of breast abscesses in breastfeeding women.

This research is supported by the Department for International Development’s Evidence Building and Synthesis Research Programme which is led by Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine

Citation

Hayley Irusen, Anke C Rohwer, D Wilhelm Steyn, Taryn Young. Treatments for breast abscesses in breastfeeding women. Cochrane database of systematic reviews (2015) DOI 10.1002/14651858.CD010490.pub2

Treatments for breast abscesses in breastfeeding women

Updates to this page

Published 17 August 2015