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Lactation and post-partum amenorrhoea: a study based on data from three Norwegian cities 1860–1964

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 July 2008

Knut Liestøl ,
Margit Rosenberg  and
Lars Walløe
Knut Liestøl
Affiliation:
Department of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
Margit Rosenberg
Affiliation:
Department of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
Lars Walløe
Affiliation:
Department of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
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Summary

Medical records from maternity clinics in three Norwegian cities, Oslo, Bergen and Trondheim, have been used to study the relationship between lactation and post-partum amenorrhoea during the period 1860–1964. Resumption of menses after a period of post-partum amenorrhoea has been examined separately during lactation, after cessation of lactation, and in the absence of lactation, in 5250 cases. During ongoing lactation the median duration of post-partum amenorrhoea was found by survival analysis to be 12 months for women who had given birth before 1900 and 6 months for women who had given birth after 1900. In a Cox regression analysis, age of menarche and parity were found to influence the duration of post-partum amenorrhoea, in addition to the child's birth year. With a later age of menarche there was longer amenorrhoea, and primiparae resumed menses earlier than multiparae. After cessation of breast-feeding the median duration of amenorrhoea was 1 month, the only variable significantly influencing it being the age of menarche, a younger age showing a shorter duration. In the absence of lactation the survivor function started to decline after 3–4 weeks, and had a half-life of 2 months.

None of the variables indicating the woman's social condition seemed to influence the duration of amenorrhoea. The decline in the duration of post-partum amenorrhoea during ongoing lactation from 1860 until today is therefore probably caused by a changed breast-feeding pattern rather than by improved nutrition for women giving birth.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Biosocial Science , Volume 20 , Issue 4 , October 1988 , pp. 423 - 434
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1988

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