Pumping breast milk by hand may be more effective than the use of mechanical pumps in feeding newborns who are having trouble suckling within the first 12 to 36 hours after birth, according to a new study published in the Archives of Disease in Childhood.
Researchers worked with 68 new mothers whose infants were latching on to the nipple or sucking poorly within the first few hours after delivery. The moms were randomly assigned to either manual or mechanical breast pumping in 15 minute increments.
The study authors found no difference in the amount of milk that was produced, the pain experienced by the mother or her confidence in breastfeeding at the two-month mark. The researchers did, however, find a significant difference in breastfeeding rates when the infants were two months old.
Almost all – 97 percent – of the mothers who used manual expression said they were breastfeeding at two months, compared to only 73 percent of those who had used a mechanical pump.
While both manual and mechanical methods are efficient ways of producing milk once the supply has been established, health care providers should start by teaching hand expression to mothers whose newborns are feeding poorly immediately after birth, conclude the researchers.
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