Mastitis called inflammation of the mammary gland. Mastitis is lactational (postpartum), which develops in nursing mothers, and non-lactational, that is, not related to breastfeeding. Non-lactational mastitis usually develops due to injuries of the mammary gland or hormonal disorders in the body of a woman and is rare.
Mastitis - causes
Mastitis develops when bacteria enter the breast tissue, either through cracked nipples or through the blood (if there are foci of infection in the woman’s body). Usually, when a small amount of bacteria enters the woman’s mammary gland, her immune system successfully copes with this problem. However, in the postpartum period, the body of most women is weakened, it can not give bacteria a worthy rebuff, so mastitis develops.
Very often, mastitis occurs due to lactostasis, or stagnation of milk in the ducts of the mammary glands, which develops due to insufficient or incomplete expressing of milk or rare feedings (since milk in the ducts of the mammary gland is a favorable environment for the multiplication of bacteria due to its nutritional value) .
Mastitis - Symptoms
Mastitis is characterized by acute onset and develops within a few hours or 1-2 days. It manifests itself with the following symptoms:
- an increase in body temperature above 38 ° C, indicating an inflammatory process in the body. Because of this, a sick woman has headaches, chills, weakness;
- pains in the mammary gland, which are permanent and intensify during breastfeeding;
- an increase in the mammary gland in size and its redness in the area of inflammation.
In the absence of treatment in the early stages of the disease, purulent mastitis begins. It manifests itself:
- increase in body temperature to 39? C and above;
- headaches, sleep disturbance, lack of appetite;
- severe pain in the mammary gland, which appear even with a light touch on the chest;
- an increase in lymph nodes in the axillary region.
Mastitis - diagnosis
They diagnose mastitis based on the characteristic signs that the doctor can detect during examination and palpation (palpation) of the mammary gland. To confirm the diagnosis and detect an inflammatory process in the body, a general blood test is prescribed. The type of bacteria and their sensitivity to certain antibiotics is determined using bacteriological examination of milk. Sometimes the diagnosis of mastitis can be supplemented by an ultrasound examination of the breast (ultrasound).
Mastitis - treatment and prevention
The treatment of mastitis is determined by the duration of the disease, its form, etc., and its goal is to reduce the growth of bacteria, reduce the inflammatory process and anesthesia.
Non-purulent forms of mastitis are treated with a conservative method. The main drugs in this case are antibiotics, the choice of which is determined by the sensitivity of the bacteria. Most often, treatment is carried out with antibiotics from the groups of penicillins, cephalosporins, etc., which are prescribed orally, intramuscularly or intravenously. To eliminate pain in the mammary gland, a woman is prescribed local anesthetics.
The patient should pump milk from both mammary glands every 3 hours to prevent milk stagnation. For a faster recovery, milk production should be reduced or completely suppressed by taking special medications that your doctor should prescribe. After the woman has fully recovered, lactation can be resumed.
Treatment of purulent forms of mastitis is carried out only by surgical intervention. It is not recommended to treat any form of mastitis with folk remedies, since they are not able to effectively counteract the infection that has entered the mammary glands. It must be remembered that the lack of timely treatment for mastitis can lead to the development of purulent forms that are dangerous for the patient's life.
Prevention of mastitis consists in careful care of the mammary glands, adherence to feeding hygiene, the use of emollient creams and the timely expression of milk.
Comments
