Study og the differences between internal and external wet nurses of a human milk banking

Abstract

This study had as objective to explore the profile of inpatient and outpatient nursing mothers assisted at the Human Milk Bank of the University Hospital of Maringá – PR, Brazil, during the year 2004. The population of 643 women was proportionally stratified month-by-month, adding 30% for losses, totaling 147 inpatient and 177 outpatient women. Epidemiological and perinatal variables were collected from records, with age as the dependent variable, and adopting a significance level of 5%. In the sample, 52% of inpatient women had completed elementary and middle school; 1.3% of them had finished college; for outpatient mothers, 24% had completed elementary and middle school; 29% of them had gone to college. Of all outpatient nursing mothers, 60% were working; 64% of inpatient women were housewives. First-time mothers were most common in both groups. Birth occurred by cesarean section for 56% of inpatient women and 72% of outpatient women. Exclusive breastfeeding was practiced by 65% of outpatient women and by 100% of inpatient mothers. In the x2-test, babies born in private hospitals had 1.47 times greater risks of not being exclusively breastfed; giving birth at a public hospital represented a 30% lower risk of nipple trauma for the mother. Inpatient women were better prepared for breastfeeding and had a statistically significant higher probability of breastfeeding exclusively and less difficulty on managing lactation.