Effect of Online Infant Care Education Based on Meleis's Transition Theory on Breastfeeding Success and Discharge Readiness: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

The study was done at one hospital in Istanbul, so local practices, staff and policies may have shaped the result. All mothers came from one cultural context, and norms around pregnancy, breastfeeding and maternal roles may have influenced engagement and outcomes. Participants were first-time mothers at 32-38 weeks with internet access and no prior prenatal education, so the result may not apply to mothers with previous births, without digital access, or already educated in prenatal classes. Infants transferred to intensive care were excluded, and mothers whose infants were not placed with them or were not born at term were excluded during follow-up, so more complex newborn situations were not represented. There was no pretest or within-group change measurement, so the study compares groups only after the intervention and cannot show long-term effects. The control group received the intervention materials by WhatsApp, and both groups received postpartum breastfeeding training, so the added effect of the online sessions and weekly contact is not clear. Participants and the person delivering the intervention were not blinded, although the breastfeeding outcome assessor and statistician were blinded. The paper says intention-to-treat analysis was used and missing values were handled by last observation carried forward, but the final analysed sample is reported as 102, so the exact effect of missing data is not fully detailed.

The authors report no funding and no conflicts of interest.

Do not conclude that the online education programme alone caused the higher breastfeeding and discharge readiness scores. The control group also received the same education materials, and both groups received postpartum breastfeeding training, so the contribution of the online sessions, weekly contact and theory-based content cannot be separated.