Contrast dye for CT scan and BFing?

sliz · October 2010

I went in for a CT scan of my urinary tract this afternoon and they did one with IV iodine based dye. I wrote on the info sheet that I was nursing so I thought it was safe for nursing moms....

as I was leaving, DH thought to double check with the tech and she said that I couldn't breastfeed for 48 hours....turns out she overlooked the part where it said nursing mom...we brought A in with us and she even saw the baby so she flaked and admitted it - she seemed really sorry and I didn't want to be a B!TCH about it (it turns out she is seeing my RE and has been trying IF treatments for a year and we started talking about him and she got distracted)....

ugh - i was JUST getting my supply up to where DD was getting mostly BM and taking only a few oz of formula a day.....plus I got the flu shot so I could pass the antibodies to her....

so - is it really safe to BF after 48 hours (for any nurses/doctors out there)?

and what can I do to keep my supply up? is it going to tank in 48 hours? I don't have the medela hospital type pump anymore and I hate my playtex one....will handpumping/expressing help?

dusk42 · October 2010

I'd send your H to get the Medela hospital pump tomorrow from a drugstore/LC, etc. I'd rent it for a few days or a week.

However, I would call the 24-hr BF hotline (third link) and ask if you even have to pump and dump. According to Tom Hale (first link), most of the contrasts are fine - you can dump the first feeding to be safe. In the second link, all of the contrasts listed are L2 - see if yours is on there.

https://neonatal.ttuhsc.edu/discus/messages/55/128.html?1266590593

https://books.google.com/books?id=aiVesab_2bwC&pg=PA159&lpg=PA159&dq=Radiocontrast+Table+for+Breastfeeding+Patients&source=bl&ots=EbxnxQPQt-&sig=f3I-J5N_NM44nA4r_A6ubeHjKvQ&hl=en&ei=UBa5TLrhE8WclgeN_ozBDA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CBIQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false

https://www.ok.gov/health/documents/mch-prh-BF%20Hotline.pdf

https://breastfeeding.blog.motherwear.com/2007/06/new_247_breastf.html

https://radiology.duke.edu/wysiwyg/downloads/Breastfeeding_and_Contrast_English_Final.pdf

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1952588/

https://www.radiology.ucsf.edu/patient-care/patient-safety/ct-mri-pregnancy

lona.hunn@gmail.com · October 2010

I'm a CT tech and every hospital is going to have a different policy on this subject. We used to recommend pumping for 24 hours after your scan, but for the past couple years we tell patients to continue nursing. Very small amount gets into the breastmilk and it's not harmful to the baby.

hclavalley · October 2010

Honestly I'd keep nursing, but thats me and I went through hell the first 8 weeks after I had Sean, I was under anesthesia twice, and had 2 surgeries. Each time I called the LC at our hospital, and talked to his pedi, and both said that it was safe to nurse even though my discharge papers said not to nurse for 48-72 hours. I nursed Sean as soon as I was able physically after each surgery.

Call the LC at your hospital or your pedi to get the real deal.

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