This Woman Started Lactating From Her Vulva After Childbirth

Article via Health

Most new moms have loads of questions about breastfeeding after having their first child. How can I tell if my newborn is getting enough milk? Should breastfeeding be this painful? Etc, etc. However, here’s one that we haven’t seen before (until now): What happens if you start lactating from your vulva?

A case report published yesterday in the journal Obstetrics &Gynecologyhas brought this nearly unbelievable question to our attention.

The case report features the story of a 29-year-old woman who, four days after giving birth, suffered painful vulvar swelling. Her vulva was not only swollen and painful but also leaking “milky white fluid.”

Ectopic breast tissue can potentially be malignant just like regular breast tissue. The new case report explains that it’s important that doctors recognize the possibility of ectopic breast tissue in the vulva so as not to mistake it for a vulvar mass, such as a vulvar carcinoma.

The patient featured in the new case report had received sutures after giving birth, and they were covering the excretory duct in her vulva. She was given oral antibiotics to treat a “slight inflammatory reaction” that occurred around her incision. After the sutures were removed, the patient’s pain, swelling, and the milk secretion coming from her vulva decreased. The case report states that the woman was able to continue breastfeeding.

It also notes that doctors warned the patient that her ectopic breast tissue of the vulva could become malignant. However, as of one year after giving birth, the patient hadn’t opted to have her vulvar breast tissue excised.