Breast Milk Feeding of Infants at Birth Among People With Confirmed SARS-CoV-2 Infection in Pregnancy: SET-NET, 5 States, March 29, 2020–December 31, 2020

Abstract

Objectives. To describe prevalence of breast milk feeding among people with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection during pregnancy and examine associations between breast milk feeding, timing of maternal infection before delivery, and rooming-in status during delivery hospitalization. Methods. We performed a retrospective cohort study using data from Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, and Tennessee of whether people with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy in 2020 initiated breast milk feeding at birth. Results. Among 11 114 (weighted number) people with SARS-CoV-2 infection in pregnancy, 86.5% (95% confidence interval [CI] = 82.4%, 87.6%) initiated breast milk feeding during birth hospitalization. People with infection within 14 days before delivery had significantly lower prevalence of breast milk feeding (adjusted prevalence ratio [APR] = 0.88; 95% CI = 0.83, 0.94) than did those with infection at least 14 days before delivery. When stratified by rooming-in status, the association between timing of infection and breast milk feeding remained only among infants who did not room in with their mother (APR = 0.77; 95% CI = 0.68, 0.88). Conclusions. Pregnant and postpartum people with SARS-CoV-2 infection should have access to lactation support and be advised about the importance of breast milk feeding and how to safely feed their infants in the same room. (Am J Public Health. 2022;112(S8):S787–S796. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2022.307023 )

COVID-19 among infants: key clinical features and remaining controversies

“…8) The practical experience is that mothers are quite likely to initiate breastfeeding during a postpartum hospital stay and continue thereafter, but they have been less likely to breastfeed if infected within 2 weeks before delivery. 20,135,136) For those infants infected within the first 3 months, many will have been breastfed. 25,30,43) However, the frequency of such breastfeeding does not carry a considerable risk.…”