title: Effect of warm breastshields on breast milk pumping.
abstract: The effect of using a warm breastshield on the efficiency, effectiveness, and comfort of expressing milk with an electric breast pump was assessed. The authors tested a standard breastshield at 25°C and a breastshield warmed to 39°C on 25 mothers using their maximum comfortable vacuum or -125 mm Hg. Using a warm breastshield effectively warmed the nipple and areola and, combined with maximum comfortable vacuum, decreased the time to remove 80% of the total milk yield and increased the percentage of available milk removed after 5 minutes of expression, with no change in the percentage of available milk removed after 15 minutes of expression compared with an ambient-temperature breastshield. The data confirmed that use of the mother's maximum comfortable vacuum was more efficient than a vacuum of -125 mm Hg. Using a warm breastshield with an electric breast pump was comfortable and improved the efficiency of milk removal.
authors: Biomedical, Biomolecular and Chemical Sciences, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA 6009 Australia. Jacqueline.Kent@uwa.edu.au
authors: Jacqueline C
authors: JC
authors: Kent
authors: Donna T
authors: DT
authors: Geddes
authors: Anna R
authors: AR
authors: Hepworth
authors: Peter E
authors: PE
authors: Hartmann
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001290:Attitude; D061186:Breast Milk Expression / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D004526:Efficiency; D005260:Female; D006358:Hot Temperature; D006801:Humans; D007774:Lactation; D016014:Linear Models; D008895:Milk, Human / Q000378:metabolism; D009558:Nipples / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D013997:Time Factors; D014618:Vacuum