Digital resources and interactive multimedia tools for breastfeeding promotion and support: a scoping review

Breastfeeding is widely recognized as one of the most cost-effective public health interventions for improving maternal and child health outcomes. Nevertheless, breastfeeding indicators remain suboptimal worldwide despite strong international recommendations. In recent years, digital technologies have emerged as tools to support breastfeeding promotion, education, and continuity. However, the evidence on digital and multimedia breastfeeding interventions is heterogeneous and scattered across disciplines, limiting a comprehensive understanding of their scope and effectiveness. For the purposes of this review, "digital resources" refers broadly to digital platforms and technologies used to deliver breastfeeding-related information or support; "interactive multimedia tools" refers to resources integrating two or more media formats (e.g., text, audio, video, graphics) with user interaction; and "digital interventions" is used as an umbrella term encompassing both concepts.

To systematically map and synthesize available evidence on digital resources and interactive multimedia tools used to promote and support breastfeeding, describing their characteristics, implementation contexts, target populations, reported outcomes, and limitations.

A scoping review was conducted following the Arksey and O'Malley methodological framework and reported in accordance with PRISMA-ScR guidelines. The methodological approach was also aligned with selected recommendations from the Joanna Briggs Institute for scoping reviews. Searches were carried out in PubMed, the Virtual Health Library (VHL), Google Scholar, and the AI-powered tool Consensus between April 2023 and July 2024. Peer-reviewed publications in English and Spanish from the last 10 years addressing digital resources or interactive multimedia tools for breastfeeding promotion or support were included. Data were extracted and synthesized using a descriptive analytical approach.

A total of 23 studies published between 2019 and 2024 were included. The review identified a range of digital interventions, including social media platforms, mobile health (mHealth) applications, web-based resources, educational videos, telemedicine services, and multimedia materials. Most studies targeted pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers, often in contexts of social or economic vulnerability. Overall, digital interventions were associated with increased breastfeeding knowledge, improved maternal self-efficacy, enhanced access to information and peer support, and favorable perceptions. However, evidence regarding breastfeeding duration and exclusivity was inconsistent, and substantial variability was observed in intervention design, implementation strategies, and outcome measurement. Studies from both high-income countries (HICs) and low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) were identified, with social media campaigns and low-cost mobile approaches appearing particularly relevant in resource-constrained contexts.

Digital resources and interactive multimedia tools represent promising complementary strategies for breastfeeding promotion and support. This scoping review highlights both the potential benefits and the heterogeneity of existing digital interventions, emphasizing the need for standardized, theory-informed, and context-sensitive approaches to strengthen evidence-based practice and future research in digital breastfeeding support.