Preventive and therapeutic effects of probiotics on lactational mastitis

Lactational mastitis is usually associated with pathogenic bacterial infection, milk deposition, nipple damage, and fatigue of mothers. At present, the treatment of lactational mastitis is mostly focused on symptom management, antibiotic treatment, and surgical treatment. The increased incidence of antibiotic resistance of the causative species is also a key cause of concern for treatment of lactational mastitis, thus leading to the need to develop novel therapies. In recent years, probiotics have been identified and used, which may provide a substitute for the prevention and treatment of lactational mastitis. Key words: Mastitis; Microbial mechanism; Probiotics