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Ms. Blessy Mathew *.
1. Associate Professor, College of Nursing, LLRM Medical College, Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, India
*Corresponding Author: Ms. Blessy Mathew
Citation: B Mathew, Topical Breast Milk for Episiotomy Wound Healing: A Systematic Review of Clinical and Mechanistic Evidence, Annals of Gynecology and Obstetrics Research, ACP Publishers, 1(1).
Copyright : © Blessy Mathew, this is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Received: 08 June 2026 | Accepted: 20 June 2026 | Published: 27 June 2026
Keywords: Pregnancy, Antenatal care, Prenatal diagnosis, Maternal-fetal medicine High-risk pregnancy
Background:
Episiotomy is a common obstetric intervention often associated with pain, delayed wound healing, and risk of infection. Conventional treatments include antiseptics and pharmacological agents, but interest is increasing in natural, cost-effective alternatives. Human breast milk (HBM), rich in bioactive components, has emerged as a potential therapeutic agent for wound healing.
Objectives:
To systematically review evidence from 2020–2025 on the effectiveness of topical breast milk in episiotomy wound healing.
Search Strategy:
A comprehensive literature search was conducted using PubMed, Scopus, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar with relevant keywords related to breast milk and episiotomy wound healing.
Selection Criteria:
Randomized controlled trials, quasi-experimental studies, and in vitro studies evaluating topical breast milk for episiotomy wounds were included. Reviews, duplicates, and irrelevant studies were excluded.
Data Collection and Analysis:
Data on study design, sample size, interventions, comparisons, and outcomes were extracted and synthesized narratively following PRISMA guidelines.
Main Results:
Included studies consistently demonstrated that topical breast milk improves wound healing, reduces pain, and lowers infection rates compared to standard care. Mechanistic evidence supports enhanced fibroblast proliferation, anti-inflammatory effects, and antimicrobial activity due to bioactive components such as growth factors and immunoglobulins.
Conclusions:
Topical breast milk is a safe, accessible, and cost-effective intervention for episiotomy wound healing. Further large-scale, multicenter randomized controlled trials are needed to establish standardized protocols and strengthen evidence.
Funding:
No external funding was received for this study.
Pregnancy, Antenatal care, Prenatal diagnosis, Maternal-fetal medicine High-risk pregnancy