The objectives of this article are to systematically review i) the extent of medicine use in postpartum women, and ii) the impact of maternal medicine use (excluding contraceptives and galactogogues) on breastfeeding outcomes (initiation and/or duration). PubMed, Medline (Ovid), Scopus (Elsevier), Cinahl (EBSCO), PsycINFO (Ovid), Embase (Ovid) and Web of Science (ISI) databases were searched to find original studies on medicine use in women after the birth. Additional studies were identified by searching Google Scholar, Wiley Online Library, Springer Link, selected journals and from the reference list of retrieved articles. Observational studies with information about postpartum women’s use of any type of medicine either for chronic or acute illnesses with or without breastfeeding information were included. The majority of relevant studies suggest that more than 50 % of postpartum women (breastfeeding or not) required at least one medicine. Due to the lack of uniform medication use reporting system and differences in study designs, settings and samples, the proportion of medicine use by postpartum women varies widely, from 34 to 100 %. Regarding the impact of postpartum women’s medicine use on breastfeeding, a few studies suggest that women’s use of certain medicines (e.g. antiepileptics, propylthiouracil, antibiotics) during lactation can reduce initiation and/ or duration of breastfeeding. These studies are limited by small sample size, and with one exception, all were conducted in Canada more than a decade ago. Large scale studies are required to establish the relationship between maternal medicine use and breastfeeding, considering type of illness, period of use and total duration of medicine use.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13006-015-0053-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Introduction Antidepressant use is common in the perinatal period, but there are concerns that it can negatively impact on breastfeeding outcomes. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of perinatal antidepressant use on breastfeeding initiation and duration. Material and methods This was a retrospective analysis of 80 882 mother–infant dyads in the Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Cohort Study (MoBa). Women were first classified according to self‐reported mental disorders and timing of antidepressant use before and/or after gestational week 28 (i.e., early‐mid–gestation and/or late‐gestation use). We subsequently classified women according to self‐reported mental disorders and antidepressant use postpartum and whether antidepressants were continued from late gestation or were new/restarted. Breastfeeding outcomes included breastfeeding initiation as well as predominant or any breastfeeding and abrupt breastfeeding discontinuation until 6 months. Results Late‐gestation antidepressant use was associated with a reduced likelihood of breastfeeding initiation (adjusted relative risk [aRR] 0.93; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.90–0.97) but not predominant (aRR 0.96; 95% CI 0.67–1.39) or any (aRR 1.00; 95% CI 0.93–1.07) breastfeeding at 6 months compared with unexposed women with mental disorders. When examined according to postnatal antidepressant use, no differences in predominant (aRR 0.94; 95% CI 0.60–1.48) or any breastfeeding (aRR 0.99; 95% CI 0.91–1.07) at 6 months were evident among women who continued antidepressant use from late gestation into the postpartum period compared with unexposed women with mental disorders. In contrast, new/restarted antidepressant use postpartum was associated with a reduced likelihood of predominant (aRR 0.37; 95% CI 0.22–0.61) and any (aRR 0.49; 95% CI 0.42–0.56) breastfeeding at 6 months, as well as increased risk of abrupt breastfeeding discontinuation (aRR 2.64; 95% CI 2.07–3.37) compared with the unexposed women with mental disorders. Conclusions A complex relation exists between depression, antidepressant use, and breastfeeding outcomes. Antidepressant use in late pregnancy was associated with a reduced likelihood of breastfeeding initiation but not breastfeeding duration or exclusivity. In contrast, initiating or restarting antidepressants postpartum was associated with poorer breastfeeding outcomes. Overall, women taking antidepressants and women with a mental disorder may benefit from additional education and support to improve breastfeeding rates and promote maternal and infant health and wellbeing.

Background Mastitis is a common and distressing maternal postpartum condition, but the relationship between mastitis timing and antibiotic treatment and breastfeeding outcomes and postnatal mental health is unclear. Objectives To describe the incidence of mastitis and treatment with antibiotics in first 6 months postpartum, and to investigate the impact of mastitis timing and antibiotic treatment on breastfeeding practices and postnatal mental health. Methods This study is based on 79,985 mother‐infant dyads in the Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Cohort Study (MoBa). Women were classified according to self‐reported mastitis within first month (‘early’) or 1–6 months (‘later’) postpartum and antibiotic treatment. Breastfeeding outcomes included predominant or any breastfeeding and abrupt breastfeeding cessation until 6 months postpartum. Maternal mental health was assessed by self‐report at 6 months postpartum. Results The incidence of mastitis was 18.8%, with 36.8% reporting treatment with antibiotics. Women reporting early mastitis were less likely to report predominant breastfeeding (adjustedd relative risk [aRR] 0.92, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.86, 0.99) and any breastfeeding for 6 months (aRR 0.97, 95% CI 0.96, 0.98) than women who did not report mastitis, and more likely to report abrupt breastfeeding cessation (aRR 1.37, 95% CI 1.23, 1.53). Late‐onset mastitis was not associated with poorer breastfeeding outcomes. Among women reporting mastitis, the risk of abrupt breastfeeding cessation was higher in those also reporting antibiotic use. Mastitis was associated with an increased risk of mental health problems postpartum which was highest among those reporting no antibiotic use (aRR 1.29, 95% CI 1.18, 1.41), in contrast to those also reporting antibiotic use (aRR 1.08, 95% CI 0.96, 1.22). Conclusions Lactational mastitis and its associated treatment with antibiotics are common. Early (<1 month postpartum) mastitis appears to be a modest risk factor for suboptimal breastfeeding outcomes. In addition, mastitis is associated with poorer mental health.

Calotropis gigantea (CG) widely known as milk weed, is a valuable Apocynaceae medicinal herb that is still underutilized despite its wide range of pharmacological effects. Its traditional therapeutic virtues have made it popular in Southeast Asian countries. It is commonly used to treat inflammation as a traditional medication, analgesic, mosquito repellent, antimicrobial, antioxidant, diabetes mellitus, cancer and the ability to cure wounds we analyzed all of the published information on the phytoconstituents isolated from the plant, as well as the pharmacological qualities of this remarkable herb, in order to emphasize its efficacy and potential.