Investigating the Effect of Non-Pharmacological Treatments on Reduction of Breast Engorgement in Breastfeeding Women: A Review Study

Breast engorgement is a common postpartum problem that has been identified as the third maternal factor that leads to a decrease or discontinuation of breastfeeding and breast abscess. Considering the side effects of chemical drugs during lactation, the aim of the present review study was to investigate the effect of non-pharmacological treatments on reduction of breast engorgement in breastfeeding women.

The search process was to find the clinical trials regarding the correlation of preterm infant weight with aromatherapy on different electronic databases, including Cochrane, Web of Science, EMBASE, Scopus, and Medline (via PubMed). No time and language restrictions were considered in this study.

According to the results, a significant decrease was seen in breast severity of engorgement in hollyhock compress (p<0.001); in a study, Ginger compression group was more effective than control group (p<0.001). In addition, the herbal compress was more effectiveness than hot compress groups. In another study, the cabbage leaves and gel packs groups reduced significantly in pain compared to the control group,  In a study, Intermittent compress (hot and cold) was more effective than acupressure in decreasing the intensity of breast hyperemia in lactating women.  Some studies showed that cabbage is beneficial on breast engorgement and some studies did not find any significant difference between studies.

Hollyhock, Ginger, Herbal compress and Cabbage leaves were effective for treatment of breast engorgement in Lactating women.