advice needed on treatment for thrush

[Leenie]

i am in agony with thrush on and around my nipples, my GP has prescribed nystan drops for my ds which has cleared his mouth up brilliantly, and clotrimazole 1% cream for me, however, i am worried about using it, the leaflet that came with it explains all about using it for vaginal thrush, athletes foot and other various fungal infections , even " jock itch" and other penile infections, so given this i am quite put off and wary of putting it on as i am exclusivly b/feeding, there is no info about using it on the nipple or whether it is ok to use and bf, has anyone else been prescribed this, i tried using it after a feed and then washing off before next feed, but at the moment my 6 wk old ds is feeding practically all the time so not getting to use it and hence am getting sorer and sorer with each feed, has anyone got any advice on how to relief the pain please

Leenie, sounds like the GP has prescribed sensibly but I agree the cream should be wiped off before feeding. If washing, I would not use soap as this is more likely to irritate your skin further. As you probably know, thrush thrives in moist conditions so: change your bra daily, let your nips air dry after feeding and avoid using breastpads. Eating live yoghurt and taking acidophilus capsules may also help. You could also discuss with your GP whether they would prescribe you oral antifungal tablets: the Breastfeeding Network do a very good information leaflet on this aimed at healthcare professionals.

I found Daktarin cream (for me) and Daktarin oral gel, in combination with oral Fluconazole (at the correct dose - see La Leche League website) got rid of the thrush.

It came back after an insufficient dose from the first GP I saw, but after changing GPs I got a bigger dose and it was effective.

I also did the washing, acidophilus, yoghurt etc and stopped eating bread, sugar, alcohol for a few weeks.

Touch wood one year on and it never came back. Good luck

Grapefruit Seed Extract

Really really really good stuff, Cleared out extremely stubborn thrush.
Tried Nystatin x2, Clotrimazole x2 and Daktarin gel and all failed.
I used a combi of the Capsules and the Drops for DD and my nipples.

Good luck

I used daktarin oral gel on both nipples and baby's mouth.
The advice on this has been revised lately because of people putting too much gel in the bay's mouth and causing a choking hazard but if you are aware of possible problems and rub the gel in properly it's fine.
You could also ask the gp for fluconazole.
Have a look here fpr the best up-to-date information.

also helpful

I personally found that the creams didn't cut it when I got thrush (lots!) our GP prescribed Fluconazole - brilliant!!
in the end I didn't go to get a prescription DH popped to tesco and bought it over the counter

I hpe you manage to clear it - I remember that pain so clearly - Good luck!

i bn prescribed this too..jsu done thread on it... havent used canesten yet..im worried liek u..hav eu used it yet?

i have to wear breastpads, i have leaky boobs!

mama2leah, I think the issue with pads is the waterproof backing, which means everything gets moist and humid. You could use cloth ones or I guess chop a muslin into four and fold it over. If you do this I think you need to wash on a hot wash (60 deg) to make sure the bugs don't survive.

Hi there, nothing from the doctor worked for me, if it doesn't clear up try the following (lifted from another post I made):

My breast feeding counsellor recommended some alternative cures from the Organic pharmacy (www.theorganicpharmacy.com) who sent everything by post. Here's what FINALLY worked for me!!

First of all as a first aid measure to dramatically reduce the pain I took homeopathy called Borax. I also sprayed my nipples with a natural antiseptic made with silver particles called Colloidal Silver after each feed. The infant gets the Borax through you I think, although my son didn't seem to suffer that much anyway.

This reduced the pain withing days and I then cleared it up completely with Acidophilus probiotic powder - I made a paste by emptying a capsule (kept in fridge) and mixing it with breast milk or water and applying it to the nips and letting it dry in the fresh air for a bit, then leaving it on inside bra for as long as poss. You can also give this to the baby mixed with breat milk, does no harm. Just couldn't believe how well and how quickly this all worked.

Good luck!

Hi - I had thrush bf-ing twins, only one had it at first. Doc prescribed Nystatin drops for both babes and clotrimazole cream 1% for my nipples - rub it in until all the white has gone, I did wash nipples before next feed but I also read somewhere you dont have to, if there's no white that you can see left on.

It cleared up on both then came back a few days after finishing the course. A second course cleared it up - again it came back a few days later on the twin who'd had it first & worse - but then it cleared up after a few more days and fingers crossed, none since.

A doula friend had warned me about breast pads - she said to change to new ones every 4 hours at least. I didn't listen at the time ... cloth ones better I'm told.

Good luck, hth