A midwife-turned-researcher has developed a new screening tool that can predict whether a mother-to-be will struggle with breastfeeding, weeks before she even gives birth.
Created by Dr Sharon Perrella from The University of Western Australia's Centre for Human Lactation Research and Translation, the tool is designed to pick up pre-existing health conditions that can make breastfeeding difficult.
Dr Perrella – who will discuss the screening tool at a free webinar to be held on Thursday 7 August as part of World Breastfeeding Week – said the aim was to identify women who may need extra help.
"While most Australian women plan to breastfeed, many are disappointed when they face challenges," Dr Perrella said.
"Early detection means women can receive targeted information and support both before and after birth to establish and continue breastfeeding."
Conditions including gestational diabetes, polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome (PMOS), elevated pre-pregnancy BMI, and previous breast surgery can all lead to problems including low milk supply.
A recent study led by Dr Perrella, which used screening data generated by the tool, found as many as half of all pregnant women had at least one risk factor that could hamper breastfeeding.
"In many cases women have no idea that these health conditions may impede breastfeeding, leaving them unprepared and shocked when problems arise – and often leading them to stop earlier than planned," she said.
The study sought to establish the prevalence of lactation risk factors and their impact on subsequent breastfeeding.
Published in the Journal of Midwifery and Women's Health, it found 77.1 per cent of women with no lactation risk factors were still fully breastfeeding six-to-eight weeks after birth.
By contrast, only 60.2 per cent of women with one risk factor were still fully breastfeeding by the time their baby was six-to-eight weeks old.
Half the women involved in the study had at least one lactation risk factor, while almost one-third had two or more.
"We found women with two or more risk factors were more than twice as likely as women with no risk factors to have stopped fully breastfeeding six-to-eight weeks after birth," Dr Perella said.
"However, our clinical experience shows that when provided with prenatal screening and targeted support, breastfeeding rates at six months among women with multiple risk factors are similar to women without those risk factors."
Dr Perrella, who is also a midwife, neonatal nurse and lactation consultant, said the screening tool could easily be built into routine pregnancy care.
"In our experience women really appreciate feeling prepared, and they are more confident to continue breastfeeding when they have a plan in place," she said.
"Even when a woman is unable to reach a full milk supply, she is more likely to continue when she has support and solutions."
Registrations for the 7pm webinar, which will share details of the screening tool and explore the factors that make breastfeeding work, are now open. To take part, register here.
