Influence of the mode of delivery on initiation of breast-feeding

The initiation and the prevalence of breast-feeding after discharge from hospital was investigated in 370 singleton parturients and compared to the mode of delivery. Infants delivered by vacuum extraction or by caesarean section started suckling later, they were more often given formula prescription during the first 4 days, they were less often breast-fed during the night, and their mother's milk 'came in' later, but it did not affect the prevalence of breast-feeding after discharge. A sleepy infant, which was not very willing to suckle, was the most frequent nursing-problem mentioned by the mothers 4 days after delivery. Failure to start breast-feeding occurred in only 2.2% of the women, and after 6 months 52% were still breast-feeding their children.