Breastfeeding Handbook for Physicians, 3rd Edition Doody's Expert Review Review Questionnaire ISBN: 9781610024426 ISBN-10: 1610024427 Copyright: 2023 Edition: 3rd Editor: AAP and ACOG, , Schanler, Richard J., Feldman-Winter, Lori, Mass, Sharon B., Meek, Joan Younger, Noble, Lawrence, Doody's Expert Review    Score: 97 Doody's Star Rating™ and Doody's Expert Review provide by Doody Enterprises, Inc. Reviewer: Meredith Chardukian,  MD  (University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center) Description This handbook serves as an important resource on breastfeeding initiation, maintenance, support, and advocacy. It makes good use of tables and lists to emphasize key content in a way that engages readers. This third edition provides the most current, evidence-based guidance on breastfeeding recommendations, updating the previous version which was published in 2014. Purpose The purpose of the book is to provide a concise, yet comprehensive resource on breastfeeding and human lactation. It covers lactation physiology and clinical practice guidance that is valuable across pediatrics and obstetrics and gynecology. One of the book's goals is to encourage physicians to become teachers of breastfeeding and lactation medicine. This is an important objective, as improving provider education can enhance patient education and lead to greater rates of breastfeeding initiation and maintenance. The book effectively equips readers with the knowledge and confidence to provide this support to their patients. Audience The intended audience of this book is primarily physicians; however, it is also a valuable resource for nurses, advanced practice providers, lactation specialists, and learners in the healthcare field. The content is relevant to clinical practice in multiple specialties, including pediatrics, general obstetrics and gynecology, maternal-fetal medicine, family medicine, and internal medicine. This book is a joint effort between the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), both of which are highly regarded organizations comprised of expert physicians in the fields of pediatrics and obstetrics and gynecology. The authorship provides the highest level of credibility on the subject matter. Features The book contains a wide variety of content, beginning with the evidence for breastfeeding as it relates to infant and maternal benefits and risk reductions. The chapters cover other important topics such as the composition of human milk, anatomy and physiology of lactation, initiation and maintenance of breastfeeding, breastfeeding under special circumstances, lactation support technology, medication use and contraception in breastfeeding mothers, and complications/contraindications to breastfeeding. This third edition provides several updates, including a new chapter, "Nonnutritive Components in Human Milk," which discusses bioactive factors and host defense mechanisms. One topic that the book covers particularly well is the importance of establishing a breastfeeding-friendly medical office. The thorough table of contents, short chapter length, and frequent use of visual aids make the book easy to navigate. A unique feature of the book is the appendix, which includes numerous publications from the AAP and ACOG which shape the current guidelines around breastfeeding. Assessment This book serves as an excellent resource on breastfeeding for anyone in the healthcare field who takes care of mothers and/or babies. It is a must-read for pediatricians, obstetricians, and those in training. The book includes the latest AAP and ACOG breastfeeding policies, as well as an updated discussion of legislative protections for mothers in the workplace, guidance on substance abuse, disaster preparedness, and COVID-19 recommendations. Review Questionnaire Range Question Score 1-10 Are the author's objectives met? 10 1-10 Rate the worthiness of those objectives. 10 1-5 Is this written at an appropriate level? 5 1-5 Is there significant duplication? (1=significant, 5=insignificant) 3 1-5 Are there significant omissions? (1=significant, 5=insignificant) 5 1-5 Rate the authority of the authors. 5 1-5 Are there sufficient illustrations? 5 1-5 Rate the pedagogic value of the illustrations. 4 1-5 Rate the print quality of the illustrations. 5 1-5 Are there sufficient references? 5 1-5 Rate the currency of the references. 5 1-5 Rate the pertinence of the references. 5 1-5 Rate the helpfulness of the index. 5 1-5 If important in this specialty, rate the physical appearance of the book N/A 1-10 Is this a worthwhile contribution to the field? 10 1-10 If this is a 2nd or later edition, is this new edition needed? 10 ©2025 Doody Enterprises, Inc.