Maternity Nursing Q 112
The mother asks the nurse. “What’s wrong with my son’s breasts? Why are they so enlarged?” Which of the following would be the best response by the nurse?
A. “The breast tissue is inflamed from the trauma experienced with birth.”
B. “A decrease in material hormones present before birth causes enlargement,”
C. “You should discuss this with your doctor. It could be a malignancy.”
D. “The tissue has hypertrophied while the baby was in the uterus.”
Correct Answer: B. “A decrease in material hormones present before birth causes enlargement,”
The presence of excessive estrogen and progesterone in the maternal-fetal blood followed by prompt withdrawal at birth precipitates breast engorgement, which will spontaneously resolve in 4 to 5 days after birth.
Option A: The trauma of the birth process does not cause inflammation of the newborn’s breast tissue.
Option C: Newborns do not have breast malignancy. This reply by the nurse would cause the mother to have undue anxiety.
Option D: Breast tissue does not hypertrophy in the fetus or newborns.