Help - breast thrush - what treatment works?????????

[foxcub]

I have breast thrush in my milk ducts (again - had it 4 times with DS1) following a course of ABs and am in despair

I am on fluconazole (400mg loading dose then 200mg daily) plus acidophilus, plus not eating sugar, bread, alcohol etc etc

I'm unconvinced the fluconazole will work, as I've been on a lower dose for 10 days and it hasn't worked.

Has anyone tried anything different which got rid of the ductal thrush? Or has anyone else tried the higher dose fluconazole??

Please help, I am desperate and very depressed, I so much want to be able to BF my baby and am dreading the pain levels of the thrush if it is still there when my medication runs out. I've had this before and its unbearable. Baby is only 3 weeks ols, so I am faced with the prospect of maybe having to give up BFing at such an early stage if I can get rid of the thrush.

Also, has anyone given up because of thrush - does the thrush go when you stop BFing?

Help please!!

"What I also found was excellent was washing my nipples in white vinegar. I would dab it on with cotton wool (sep bit for each nipple)"

I did that too. Very good. Thrush dies in acidic environ. Obviously only do it if nipples aren't cracked/bleeding (ooooouuuuucccchhhh !)

You need 1 part distilled white vinegar (has to be distilled) you can get it any supermarket, to 9 parts tap water. Yes, dab with cotton wool on to nipples after every feed. Change your vinager solution every day.

thanx - this is realy useful....

Thanx to everyone for the advice re. the thrush - am going tó give it two more weeks and se how it goes

foxcub - the advice i have read is to continue the treatment for longer than the symptoms have seemingly gone. that is because i read that the thrush bacteria can be present even where there are no obvious symptoms (i.e. my ds never had white patches in his mouth, but i had shooting pain from hell very deep in both my breasts all the way down from my shoulders).

gp didn't diagnose thrush because nothing in ds mouth but i knew i had it from what i had read. i did daktarin/canestan and slight change of diet (couldn't give up cakes for too long !!) for a month even though the pain in my breasts had gone within days.

Thanx yelloowrose - the symptoms have definately subsided now and I have about 9 days left of the meds, so hopefully that should be long enough to kill it off. Will continue to watch my diet as well..

good luck hope it gets better for you, it is a real pain in the a* thrush as well as a pain in the boobs

thanx

Hope you are feeling better foxcub. Can I just ask how did you know if you had thrush? I am experiencing intense breast pain deep in my breast and going into my armpit and shoulder but ds has no symptoms so hv says she doesn't think it's thrush.

How would I know if I have it? I did have antibiotics for a week after the birth becuase of forceps delivery.

I too feel like giving up bf because of the pain(and have posted separately about this)

Tbh I think sometimes you only know it was thrush when the treatment you take for it cures the pain (IYSWIM) although my lo had a horrendous thrush rash on her bum and could fart for England, nay the entire EU.

ChrissyJ - my symptoms tend to be: deep burning/needles type pain in breast after feeds, feeling of grittiness when feeding through nipples, which eventually developes into intense pain which feels like crushed glass going through nipples, very sensitive nipples - air, clothing and even water makwe them uncomfortable, baby pulling off and crying while feeding. Also, nips appear red and shiny - and develop new cracks which don't heal up.

Baby may not display any visible signs of mouth thrush (i.e. you may not see white spots in the mouth)

Manictigger - thanks for asking - I'm feeling a lot better now, but still on fluconazole and scared to stop taking it now LOL!!