RESUMO
This quasi-experimental study was conducted in Shiraz, the Islamic Republic of Iran, on 120 pairs of mothers and infants in a maternity hospital that had a rooming-in programme. All 59 mothers in the study group received breastfeeding education, face-to-face, after delivery and during follow-up for 4 months in the mother and child health (MCH) centre or in their homes; the remaining 61 mothers comprised the control group. Exclusive breastfeeding rates were significantly higher in the study group (54%) than in the control group (6.5%), but 5% and 18% of infants, respectively, in the study and control groups had stopped breastfeeding by the age of 4 months. The mean number of days of diarrhoea experienced by infants in the study group were significantly lower (P < or = 0.004) than in the control group. At the end of 4 months, the mean weight and length of the infants were significantly higher (both P < 0.05) in the study group than in the control group. The findings indicate that rooming-in is very important for promoting exclusive breastfeeding and that there is a need for continuous breastfeeding education of mothers.
PIP: This document presents a quasi-experimental study of the effect of breast-feeding education on the duration of exclusive breast-feeding and on the feeding pattern and health of infants in their first 4-months in Shiraz, the Islamic Republic of Iran. The subjects, all of low socioeconomic status, were selected according to the following criteria: they were primiparae, their pregnancy had been normal, followed by vaginal delivery, and they had no chronic disease and were not taking any medication. The 120 mothers were randomly assigned, according to their delivery on odd or even days, to the study (S) or control (C) group, respectively. 59 mothers in the study group received face-to-face breast-feeding education after delivery and during follow-up for 4 months in the mother and child health (MCH) center or in their homes; the remaining 61 mothers comprised the control group. Results showed that at 54%, the study group had higher rates of exclusive breast-feeding than did the control group at 6.5%, but that 5% and 18% of infants, respectively, in the control group and study group had stopped breast-feeding by the age of 4 months. The mean number of days of diarrhea experienced was significantly lower in the study group than in the control group. At the end of 4 months the mean weight and length of infants were significantly higher (both P 0.05) in the study group than in control group. These findings indicate that rooming-in is very important for promoting exclusive breast-feeding and that breast-feeding education of mothers should be continued.