Systematic review of breastfeeding support for women with long-term conditions

Many women stop breastfeeding before they intended reporting lack of support from healthcare providers. Women with long-term conditions may have additional difficulties breastfeeding, resulting in lower rates of breastfeeding. A systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted to identify effective interventions for women with long-term conditions. The review included 22 studies. Most studies evaluated support interventions for women with obesity and/or gestational diabetes (n=12). Other conditions for which specific breastfeeding support interventions were identified include HIV, depression and anxiety, and substance misuse. Meta-analysis suggested that breastfeeding support compared to usual care may have small beneficial effects for exclusive breastfeeding at 3-4 months and at 6 months. There was no evidence of beneficial effects for any breastfeeding at any of the outcome time points (4-8 weeks, 3-4 months or 6 months) or for exclusive breastfeeding at 4-8 weeks. Compared to interventions for healthy women, there is a lack of studies evaluating breastfeeding support interventions for women with long-term conditions. Moreover, such interventions are less likely to be effective. Given the increase in prevalence of maternal long-term conditions, we need to better understand how support can also be effective for women with long-term conditions.