Prevalence of Nipple Soreness at 48 Hours Postpartum

Although most women start breastfeeding after delivery, difficulties often arise. One of the main reasons is nipple soreness, which contributes greatly to early cessation of breastfeeding. A soreness evaluation through validated scales, performed by health care professionals during the first few days, can contribute to improve breastfeeding and support for the mothers. Knowing the prevalence of nipple soreness during breastfeeding at 48 hours postpartum at the Infanta Cristina University Hospital (Madrid, Spain) through a cross-sectional descriptive study. The study took place between February and March 2019. A survey of 58 postpartum second day mothers was conducted including the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and Lactation Assessment Scale (LATCH) score for breastfeeding assessment. A descriptive analysis of secondary variables and subsequent bivariate inferential was performed for 95% confidence interval (CI). The prevalence of nipple soreness observed is 97% (95% CI = 92-100%). It was found, significantly (p = 0.001), that the higher the score on LATCH, the lower the score on VAS and therefore the less pain. We found a relationship between women who were in skin-to-skin contact with their babies for 2 hours without interruption after birth and a higher pain score (p = 0.046). No other associations were found between VAS and other variables such as parity, type of birth, artificial milk supplements for the newborn, or using a pacifier. The high percentage of nipple soreness detected highlights that breastfeeding can be unpleasant in the first days after delivery. It is important to include in clinical practice the assessment of nipple soreness and the effectiveness of breastfeeding using validated scales.