Relationships between assisted reproductive technologies and initiation of lactation: Preliminary observations

This study examined initiation of lactation in primiparous mothers of late preterm infants who had conceived with assisted reproductive technology (ARTC) compared to those who conceived spontaneously (SC).

Milk productions on day 4 (72-96 hours) and day 7 (144-168 hours) postpartum were measured by weighing expressed breastmilk and test weighing breastfeeds in the ARTC (n = 8) and SC (n = 8) groups.

Mean total milk volumes for the ARTC group compared to the SC group were clinically lower on day 4 (191 mL, SD = 110 vs. 285 mL, SD = 225) and on day 7 (374 mL, SD = 238 vs. 601 mL, SD = 243) respectively.

These preliminary observations indicated milk production in the first week was clinically lower in mothers with ARTC, with a range of potential influencing factors identified, suggesting the need for a higher-powered study investigating the effects of ART on the initiation of lactation.