Plugged Milk Duct and How to Deal With

Plugged Milk Duct and How to Deal With

Cause of plugged milk duct

Breast milk is created in breast and flowed through milk ducts into milk chamber behind areola; and under stimulation of baby’s suck, milk will out the nipples. In the ducts, because some reasons make inner wall of tracts narrowed down (be pressed from outside or plugged inside), breast milk cannot go out. At the jammed points, milk is agglomerated to create gradually lumps while it is continuously produced that makes part of duct in front of plugged point become stretch. This phenomenon also causes compression on others milk ducts creating pathological turn, so plugged milk becomes more serious.

Furthermore, there are some reasons causing plugged milk duct after childbirth in many women such as: not rubbing steadily breasts to clear off milk ducts right after birth; not getting rid of redundant milk when babies do not suck any more causing stagnancy of milk; mother has got cold so milk is difficult to circulate; not being hygiene and clean nipple after feeding baby, and so on.

Signs of plugged milk duct

The first signs of plugged milk duct are breasts becoming bigger than usual and increase the size more and more, hurt, not discharge milk or discharge but a little even when milking. Feeling of fever and pain increases gradually if breast milk is stagnated inside. Canalizing milk tracts early will reduce condition of disease and limit the highest consequences of lasting congestion.

How to clear up milk duct

Massage by hand

Use one hand to press breasts on chest or use two hands to put together. That will melt clotted milk. You must use power for massaging because there is only pressing force is able to melt milk clots that are deep in breast. Press gently in level that you can bear, move in circle, increase gradually about 20-30 times, and then reverse. Make several times.

Heat jackfruit leaves and put on the hardest positions.

Hot compresses

If after massaging, the breasts are also hurt, you can take hot compresses. Thanks to effect of hot water (not too hot to suffer from burn), clotted milk will melt gradually, clear up milk flow and help new milk go through out. Together with massaging, condition will be improved little by little.

The vacuum milk

This tool uses negative pressure to suck milk so it is often used in the early stage when the new milk is produced and has blocked positions near nipple. For plugged position in deep or in cystic milk, it is very difficult to clear up because if using small pressure, the curd cannot melt; and if strong pressure, it will damage blood vessels seriously and make ducts stretch; especially in case that plugged milk duct includes elements of infections. At the late stage, when that has formed big curds, the vacuum milk is almost no effect. Therefore, only use vacuum milk when appearing early symptoms of disease.

At the late stage, when that has formed big curds, the vacuum milk is almost no effect.

The home remedies

Treatment of plugged milk duct is not simple; for the light cases, the condition will be improved after massaging, hot compresses, and using vacuum milk. However, there are some cases that do not have any changes. We would like to introduce a few folk remedies that have cured plugged milk duct effectively:

§  Heat jackfruit leaves, and put them on the hardest area (nine leaves on each breast). Then, use your hands to massage, press hard down from top. When you see the milk flow, feeding immediately. Make repeatedly in a few days later, milk will completely clear up.

§  Wrap the stick rice in two soft cloth handkerchief, put them on breast in the rule from outside to inside, and continue until they are cold. Milk will flow well in both sides.

§  Slice young papaya, grill them to heat and then apply on breasts, it also has the same effect.

How to prevent plugged milk duct

Nipples are the parts that bacteria are easy to penetrate and plug milk rays. Therefore, it is important to note that you should always keep breasts clean, especially the nipples and interstices of nipples. Use a clean and warm towel to wipe the breast.  Before feeding babies, you need to clean nipples, and remove a few first drops of breast milk. And then, if babies do not soak all milk, you should milk the rest out in order to ensure that there is no milk clot inside causing plugged milk duct. Wipe the nipples after babies soak.

You can try these methods as above if having clogged milk after childbirth, but if situation does not improve, you need to see the doctor to be treated immediately in order to avoid producing dangerous side effect such as breast abscess.