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If the area of the breast with a blocked duct develops swelling and redness,
or if the mother develops a fever,
this may be a sign of mastitis.
Mastitis can also present as
a generalized illness with fever, aches and pains,
like the flu with generalized tenderness of the breast.
Mastitis is caused by a bacterial infection and needs to be
treated with antibiotics.
Mastitis is most commonly caused by Staphylococcus aureus
and Streptococcus species.
A study of 350 breastfeeding women in New Zealand
showed that 24% of the women reported one or more
episodes of mastitis symptoms including fever in 17%.
8% had recurrent episodes of mastitis symptoms.
Increased risk of mastitis was associated with
sore nipples in the first month post-partum (
Vogel, 1999
).
Women who suspect they have mastitis need to be seen by their
physician for proper evaluation and treatment.
Treatment involves antibiotics,
warm or cool compresses to the affected area and rest.
Women who have mastitis and are on antibiotics can still breastfeed.
In fact stopping breastfeeding may make the women more likely to
develop an abscess
(
Freed, 1991
).
Antibiotic treatment should be continued for at least 10 to 14 days to totally
eradicate the infection.
Choice of antibiotics for mastitis or a breast abscess should be guided by local sensitivities of bacteria
found in soft tissue infections. If a breast abscess is drained, the abscess material must be sent for culture
to help guide antibiotic treatment
(
Berens, 2010
,
Lawrence, 2011
p553-560).
The physician members of the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine
have developed evidence based recommendations for the evaluation and treatment of
Mastitis.
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