White spot on nipple

M

mintycat

Registered User
My LO is 3 weeks old and I have been breastfeeding her. Lately I thought my supply is dwindling but I nursed her more frequently in the past few days and my supply seems ok. However, I have been experiencing a small amount of pain upon latching and some shooting pains in both breast in the last 2-3 days. Today I saw a white spot on my right nipple which cannot be removed. Is it thrush? How can I get rid of it? Yesterday when I took her to the clinic for a check up, the nurse said my nipples seemed raw.

I am waiting for my LC to get back to me but I thought I'd get some answers here in the meantime.
 
Is the white spot you have like a blister filled with milk? If so, it sounds as though you have a milk bleb. These can be caused by a plugged duct, thrush or skin blocking the milk duct and may occur after a trauma to the nipple.

If the bleb doesn?t hurt, nothing needs to be done. If it is painful, try to apply wet heat either with a warm compress or by soaking the nipple in warm water. Another approach is to wear a cotton ball soaked in olive oil in your bra to soften the skin and then attempt to peel away the thickened layer of skin. After the feed attempt to express from the nipple the remaining material by compressing the nipple behind the plug. Sometimes it is possible to express a thickened string of milk, which will help open the duct and keep it open.

If the above treatment doesn?t bring quick relief, I?d suggest going to see your doctor or a nurse to open the blister. It is easy to get infection when you do this yourself as there is a correct technique to opening a blister. If you do have to open the blister use a little lansinoh cream afterwards as this will speed the healing and reduce the scar tissue.

If the white spot looks more like little curds on the nipple it sounds like you may have thrush. If so you will need medicine from your doctor to help clear it up. The most important thing about thrush is that both the mother AND the baby need treating at the same time. Or all that happens is it is passed between each other.

The following web site gives more information about thrush.
http://www.lalecheleague.org/NB/NBthrush.html
 
Hello Mintycat

I experienced the same thing when in my 3rd month of breastfeeding. All of the above replies are correct. It should be a blocked duct. I had it twice one after the other on different breasts.

Anyway, I got rid of it by
- soaking my nipple in warm water before each feed
- rotating my baby's position so that he latches on from different angles. Certain angles are easier to do if you let the baby lie on his back and you sort of lean over him on fours.

You have to be patient. one of my blocked duct took forever to go away..on certain days I used the breast pump when the pain was just unbearable.:gl:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top