Wound Healing

How to heal a wound on the nipple: 

1. After feeding or pumping, soak nipple in warm salt water.  Mix 1 teaspoon of salt in 1 cup warm water, put it in a shallow cup and dip your nipple in for 3 minutes.
2. Let dry.
3. You may need an antibacterial ointment.  Speak with your doctor about mupirocin (Bactroban) ointment.  Use ½ peasize of ointment on the crack after you have soaked the nipple.
4. If the wound doesn’t start to heal in 2-3 days, you may try using breast shells.  Put the shells on in between feeds, during the day.  This allows the wound not to be touched by pads, bras in between feeds.
5. If after a week you still do not see improvement, try not nursing on that side and pump at every feeding session for 24 to 48 hours. 

If there is still no healing, speak with your doctor again.