Question

The home care nurse's assignment is to visit a new mother at home 24 to 48 hours after discharge. What should the nurse expect to note in a healthy mother who is breast-feeding her newborn infant?

1. The mother has cracked nipples and feeds the infant with a supplemental bottle.
2. The mother complains of breast engorgement, and the infant demonstrates difficulty in latching onto the breast.
3. The mother is breast-feeding the infant with the infant's head turned toward her breast and the body flat in her arms; the mother has sore nipples, and the infant has a suck blister.
4. The mother is breast-feeding with the infant in a tummy-to-tummy position without signs of cracked nipples; the baby demonstrates bursts of sucking, followed by a pause and swallow.

Answer 1

In a healthy mother who is breastfeeding her newborn infant, the nurse should expect to note a tummy-to-tummy position and a baby's sucking pattern indicating an effective latch and good milk transfer.

Step-by-step explanation:

In a healthy mother who is breastfeeding her newborn infant, the nurse should expect to note the following:

1. The mother has cracked nipples and feeds the infant with a supplemental bottle. This is not a characteristic of a healthy mother who is breast-feeding.
2. The mother complains of breast engorgement, and the infant demonstrates difficulty in latching onto the breast. Breast engorgement and latching difficulties are not signs of a healthy mother and infant pair.
3. The mother is breast-feeding the infant with the infant's head turned toward her breast and the body flat in her arms; the mother has sore nipples, and the infant has a suck blister. Sore nipples and a suck blister are not indications of a healthy nursing relationship.
4. The mother is breast-feeding with the infant in a tummy-to-tummy position without signs of cracked nipples; the baby demonstrates bursts of sucking, followed by a pause and swallow. This is the correct answer. A healthy mother who is breast-feeding her newborn infant should not have cracked nipples. The tummy-to-tummy position and the baby's sucking pattern indicate an effective latch and good milk transfer.