PREVENTION OF POSTPARTUM LACTATION BY ADMINISTRATION OF DELADUMONE DURING LABOR

Inhibition of postpartum lactation was accomplished in 197 women by single intramuscular injections of a preparation containing 90 mg. of testosterone enanthate and 4 mg. of estradiol valerate per cubic centimeter of sesame oil. Four modes of administration were compared. The least effective of the four consisted of administering 2 cc. immediately or within two hours after delivery; it rendered 22 (43 %)of 51 patients completely free from such complaints as breast pain or fulness. The most effective was a dose of 3 cc. given after the first stage of labor; it rendered 43 (92%) of 47 patients completely asymptomatic. The dosages did not exceed 3 cc., and there was no evidence that they affected the course of labor, interfered with postpartum physiological adjustments, or induced bleeding or masculinization in any patient. Inhibition of lactation by this combination of hormones was overcome, in two instances, when women decided to breast feed their infants and placed them to the breast. Although the suckling stimulus readily overcame the hormone-induced inhibition, this medication was evidently more effective than the classic procedures of fluid limitation, breast binders, diuretics, ice packs, and sedation.