Breastfeeding pattern in the first month of life in women submitted to breast reduction and augmentation

To describe the breastfeeding pattern in the first month of life in women submitted to two types of surgery - breast reduction and augmentation - and to compare it with the pattern exhibited by women who had no surgery.

Controlled prospective cohort with 25 women submitted to reduction surgery, 24 submitted to augmentation surgery and 25 with no breast surgery, who gave birth at Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein, São Paulo, Brazil. The data were obtained from assessments carried out 48 to 72 hours, between the 5th and 7th days, and 30 days after delivery. The following tests were used for data analysis: chi-square test, Fisher's exact test, Kaplan-Meier curve and Cox regression.

The probability of an infant being on exclusive breastfeeding at the end of the first month of life was 29% in women with reduction surgery, 54% in those with augmentation surgery, and 80% in women who had no surgery. The probability of mixed breastfeeding being adopted during this same period amounted to 68% among women with reduction surgery, 32% in those with augmentation surgery, and only 16% among those without any breast surgery. The risk of an infant being on non-exclusive breastfeeding was five times greater in women submitted to reduction surgery when compared to those women with no surgery (p = 0.002). Among women with augmentation surgery, the risk of an infant being on non-exclusive breastfeeding was 2.6 times greater than that observed in infants whose mothers had no breast surgery (p = 0.075).

Breast reduction and augmentation surgeries led to lower rates of exclusive breastfeeding in the first month of life.