Does acute mastitis require milk dredging?

Written by Lin Yang
Breast Surgery
Updated on April 01, 2025
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During acute mastitis, it is necessary to apply local heat and then clear the milk ducts by stroking them to drain excess milk. If milk stasis occurs in the ducts, it can aggravate inflammation and, in severe cases, lead to the formation of a breast abscess. Once a breast abscess forms, it requires incision and drainage, so it is essential to completely drain any residual milk during acute mastitis.

For acute pancreatitis, prevention is more important than treatment. The specific methods include maintaining nipple cleanliness during breastfeeding, frequently washing the nipples with warm soapy water, developing good breastfeeding habits, breastfeeding regularly, ensuring that the milk is fully drawn each time, and if not, either manually expressing or using a breast pump. Additionally, avoid letting the baby sleep with the nipple in their mouth.

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Breast Surgery
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What medication is used for acute mastitis?

Acute mastitis typically requires three types of medications: topical medications, oral medications, and intravenous medications. Topical medications, also known as local medications, are mainly used to reduce swelling, such as 33% to 50% magnesium sulfate or traditional Chinese medicine topical applications made in Chinese medicine hospitals. Oral medications generally consist primarily of antibiotics, focusing on cephalosporins and erythromycin. Intravenous medications are used when acute mastitis is more severe and oral antibiotics are ineffective, requiring intravenous antibiotic infusions. It is crucial not to purchase medications arbitrarily at pharmacies but to follow the recommendations of a doctor.

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Integrative Medicine
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Can acute mastitis continue breastfeeding?

Acute mastitis is an acute suppurative infection, which can be divided into three stages according to its cause and pathological process: acute inflammatory stage, abscess formation stage, and ulceration stage. Corresponding treatments are applied at each stage. During the acute inflammatory phase, antibiotics such as penicillin should be used to control the progression of inflammation. Once an abscess forms, the main measure is to incise and drain pus in a timely manner, while also taking medicine to clear heat and detoxify. In the ulceration stage, proactive dressing changes and wound cleaning are necessary, along with internal use of heat-clearing and detoxifying medications, and decoctions that promote pus drainage. In principle, breastfeeding should be temporarily halted, and a breast pump should be used regularly to extract milk, ensuring smooth milk flow and preventing stasis. Additionally, wearing a supportive bra can help lift the breasts, and moist heat should be applied to the affected area for 20 to 30 minutes, three to four times a day. Afterwards, the nipples should be cleaned with diluted saltwater. (The use of medications should be conducted under the guidance of a doctor.)

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Written by Lin Yang
Breast Surgery
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How many days does it take for the fever from acute mastitis to go away?

The fever associated with acute mastitis can subside within a few days, but it needs to be evaluated through ultrasound and a complete blood count; these tests can be performed in the breast department of a standard hospital. If the blood count exceeds 10,000, temporary fever reduction is possible, but inflammation can cause fever to recur. In such cases, local warm and moist compresses are recommended, and injections of saline combined with penicillin can be administered to help reduce inflammation. Systemic antibiotics such as penicillin and cephalosporins can be used. Since antibiotics can be secreted into breast milk and affect infants, the use of tetracyclines, aminoglycosides, sulfa drugs, and metronidazole should be avoided. After three days of intravenous treatment, a follow-up complete blood count should be conducted to determine whether anti-inflammatory symptomatic treatment should be discontinued.

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Written by Zhang Chao Jie
Breast Surgery
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Which department should I go to for acute mastitis?

For acute mastitis, one should first consult the Department of Mammary Surgery or Thyro-Mammary Surgery. When some hospitals lack a specialized breast surgery department, patients typically consult the general surgery department or gynecology department. If it is during the night or none of the specialized departments are available, then the emergency surgery department should be consulted. Thus, there are multiple relevant departments for acute mastitis. In larger hospitals with specialized departments, one can directly consult the Department of Mammary Surgery or Thyro-Mammary Surgery. During off-hours, nights, weekends, or other emergency periods, it is appropriate to consult the emergency surgery department.

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Breast Surgery
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What should be noted for acute mastitis?

For acute mastitis, it is important to keep the nipples clean. The nipples should often be washed with soapy warm water, and rinsed with clean water before and after breastfeeding. Patients with inverted nipples should gently extrude the nipple before cleaning it, but should not use alcohol to clean the area, as alcohol can make the skin of the nipple and areola brittle and prone to cracking. It is important to develop good breastfeeding habits, breastfeeding on a regular schedule, and ensuring that all the milk is drawn out each time. If the milk cannot be fully expressed, it should be manually massaged out or extracted using a breast pump. Additionally, do not let the baby sleep with the nipple in their mouth. If there are any nipple injuries or cracks, stop breastfeeding, use a breast pump to extract the milk, and resume breastfeeding only after the wounds have healed.