Case 6.-Para-2, aged 26. 28/4/46: Normal delivery. Breast- feeding begun. Owing to shortage of beds this patient was transferred to the district on the third day of the puerperium. She herself attempted to discontinue breast-feeding on the tenth day and developed acute puerperal mastitis. 12/5/46: Readmitted to hospital. T. 1000 F. (37.80 C.); P. 106. Tender flushed left breast. Thickened area 2 in. (5 cm.) in diameter in upper and outer quadrant. Penicillin started. Baby put back on breast and all artificial feeding stopped. 13/5/46: T. 1000 F. (37.80 C.); P. 104. Breast flush limited to upper and outer quadrant. Tenderness also limited to this area. 14/5/46: T. 1000 F. (37.80 C.); P. 88. Thickening now 1 in. (2.5 cm.) in diameter. Slight flush. Slight tenderness. 15/5/46: T. 97.80 F. (36;550 C.); P. 64. No flush. Slight thicken- ing. 16/5/46: T. 980 F. (36.70 C.); P. 80. No thickening, flush, or tenderness. Penicillin discontinued. Total dosage,-500,000 Oxford units. Two weeks later this patient returned to the clinic. She was still lactating freely, but the baby was again being artificially fed. She was instructed to re-establish breast-feeding, but has since refused to return to clinic.
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Sorsby et al. (1946) studied this question.