Does mastitis always involve redness?

[peedieworky]

Hi - my DS is just over 5 months old & EBF. I have to confess, I am now in lazy latch land and thought I had escaped any BFing nastiness. Since this morning though I've been having real tenderness in part of my left breast. Is very sore to touch and in general the boob feels/looks harder and fuller. DS takes both sides at every feed so I have been feeding from the left side first every time but the tenderness isn't easing. I'm starting to worry it's mastitis starting (the danger of google..) but friends who have had it assure me mastitis makes the skin red and I don't have that - is this the case? Am also aware the sore point is in the region DS has tended to kick when flailing & screaming like he's being poleaxed getting his nappy changed. All advice appreciated, thanks!

It might be a blocked duct which could end up being mastitis I think. Try putting a very very very hot flannel on the sore bit and then hand expressing a bit. You could also get DS to feed with his chin pointing to the sore bit as that's where they suck hardest apparently.

Hope it feels better soon and that somebody a bit more expert comes along to help a bit more.

It could just be bruising. DS has kicked me many a time during a nappy change (you know, that good old two legged caterpillar lunge) and I've had a sore lumpy boob for days afterwards.

Then again, I've had mastitis too and the redness didn't appear until the second day. I had a really high temperature, DH had to call out the emergency doctor it was so bad, and when he diagnosed mastitis we didn't believe him, especially as I had no pain. He was right though, and my boob was bright red and very hot the next day. Then all the skin peeled off - like sunburn. I never had any pain: we think it's because I'm so busty that there was a enough of a fat cushion to absorb the pressure/swelling.

It could be a blocked duct maybe? Its not that serious but can result in mastitis if you don't empty it properly!
When I went out for the night and didn't feed DS this happened. Try massaging it in the shower and keep feeding from it. Express from that side when he's feeding on the other side to keep the milk constantly flowing!

The minute you see redness go to the docs though!

Ah.. Just googled blocked duct and sounds like that or bruising may be culprit (loved your two legged caterpillar analogy Baroness! He feeds both sides every time so can't express during feeds but have been feeding from the sore side first every time today. His chin is already at the sore point, oddly enough. Will try massaging in shower too. Don't think will sleep much as is very sore with even slight pressure so am tanning the wine as analgesia trying not to worry about it just yet.

How is it going Peediworky? If it is a blocked duct - I get this a lot - I find the best thing is to put a hot water bottle on it ten mins prior to feeding. My baby is much more efficient at solving the problem than my beast pump.

Thanks RingEir. Still tender but none worse. Think will try the heat pack you suggested. Don't think me constantly prodding at it to check if it's still sore is helping either!

All I can add is when I had mastitis it hit me like a freight train. I had a very high temp and was shaking almost straightaway and felt like I had the worst flu in the world. It was 2 days later that I got any redness.

I think its a gradual process from blocked duct to mastitis? I know when I had a blocked duct. I'd start getting the chills, fever, and just feeling very out of it. At that point though, I'd begin to massage the blocked duct whilst bf-ing baby - and I would bf a bit more than before though... If that works, usually the chills and fever would clear off in about a day or two, and it wouldn't become mastitis? That said I did go to the doctor once to ask about this, and he said I didn't have mastitis because if I did there would be redness. He said instead that what I had was inflammation and prescribed me some Diclofenac which I could take as needed. It might have helped, but not a lot imo. I think what really helped for me was acting on it as soon as the signs were there - i.e. fever, chills, malaise... and to soldier on with bf-ing and to massage blocked duct during feeds as much as poss and change bf-ing positions. I have had this sort of thing happen a few times in a year when I bf-ed my children when they were younger. I have heard people also suggest that putting a chilled cabbage leaf on the affected area works but I have never tried that.

Thankfully the pain has subsided so am putting it down to DS's kangaroo kicks on the changing mat - ouch!