Antenatal Milk Expression as a Lactation Support Intervention for Parents of Infants With Severe Birth Defects: A Case Series.
Jessica A Davis, Melissa Glasser, Michele Clemens and 3 others
PMID 36288447WHAT IT FOUND
Two mothers of fetuses with major heart defects practised antenatal milk expression without adverse events, but only two enrolled, collected little usable milk, and perceived benefits varied.
Key findings
01Two pregnant parents completed the prenatal visit and postpartum follow-up, and neither reported an adverse event during antenatal milk expression.
02One participant froze 1.5 milliliters of antenatal milk; the other expressed about 38 milliliters, but none of that milk was fed because it thawed during transport.
03Parents' perceptions varied: one attributed robust early milk volume partly to antenatal milk expression and said it increased comfort and confidence, while the other was unsure how much it contributed.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
Only two parents completed the intervention, so this cannot show whether antenatal milk expression helps or harms this population. No adverse events were reported by two participants, which is not evidence of safety in high-risk pregnancies. Fifteen parents were identified, 11 consented, nine declined or were ineligible, and two enrolled. The intervention included lactation consultant education, scheduled visits, diary keeping, and access to care providers, so the contribution of antenatal milk expression alone cannot be separated. Infant feeding outcomes were heavily influenced by surgery, ECMO, chylothorax, aspiration, feeding intolerance, milk fortification, and milk transport handling. Disposition of antenatally expressed milk was not assessed after the one-to-two-week postpartum interview. The study was conducted at a single site in the northeastern United States.
Declared interests
The authors declared no competing interests.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the absence of reported adverse events in two participants as proof that antenatal milk expression is safe for high-risk pregnancies. Do not read the parents' positive perceptions as evidence that the intervention improves infant feeding outcomes.