The “pumpgate” incident: Stigma against lactating mothers in the U.S. workplace

ABSTRACT

Studies conclude that breastfeeding for six months is associated with better lifelong health for the mother and the child. Mothers in the U.S. returning to work after maternity leave report difficulty with the need to take frequent breaks to pump breastmilk so many stop breastfeeding. Factors discouraging pumping breastmilk in the workplace motivated a content analysis of public comments posted in response to a legal deposition that occurred in January of 2011 in which an attorney who was a new mother was challenged about taking a break to pump breastmilk. A total of 899 public comments posted on Yahoo in 2015–2016 in response to this earlier incident were analyzed for content. Of these, only 336 mentioned breastfeeding. Overall, 148 comments showed support for breastfeeding or pumping breastmilk at work, while 182 comments showed moderate to strong disapproval (six unclassified). The majority of disapproving comments were critical of pumping breastmilk in the workplace. Implications of these findings for the duration of breastfeeding after returning to work are discussed.     

Will biomarker-based diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease maximize scientific progress? Evaluating proposed diagnostic criteria

A recently published framework for the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) in research studies would allow diagnosis on the sole basis of two biomarkers (β-amyloid and pathologic tau), even in people with no objective or subjective memory or cognitive changes. This revision will have substantial implications for future Alzheimer’s research, and the changes should be rigorously evaluated before widespread adoption. We propose three principles for evaluating any revision to diagnostic frameworks for AD: (1) does the revision improve the validity of the diagnosis; (2) does the revision improve the reliability or reduce the expense of the diagnosis; and (3) will the revision foster innovative and rigorous research across populations. The new diagnostic framework is unlikely to achieve any of these goals. Instead, it has the potential to handicap future researchers, and slow progress towards identifying effective strategies to prevent or treat AD.     

Acceptability of children's testing for HIV infection during routine care activities in the Pediatrics Department of Sourô Sanou Teaching Hospital in Bobo-Dioulasso (Burkina Faso)

Background

In order to contribute to the fight against the pediatric HIV infection, we have assessed, through a study in which we have systematically proposed to carry out children's testing, the rate of acceptability and the feasibility of children's HIV testing during the routine activities of the department. We have also analyzed the reasons for the acceptability or the refusal of the child's HIV testing by the accompanying person.