Table 1 Effects of counselling versus no counselling
Number of trials | No of events | Effect | Certainty | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Intervention | Control | Relative (95% CI) | Absolute (95% CI) | ||
Number of women who do not initiate breastfeeding within 1Â h of birth | |||||
 7 trials | 1038/1913 (54.3%) | 1188/1818 (65.3%) | RR 0.74 (0.53 to 1.02) | 170 fewer per 1000 (from 13 more to 307 fewer) | Moderate |
Number of women who stop any breastfeeding before 4–6 weeks postpartum | |||||
 29 trials (31 comparisons) | 1232/4222 (29.2%) | 1357/4066 (33.4%) | RR 0.85 (0.77 to 0.94) | 50 fewer per 1000 (from 20 fewer to 77 fewer) | Low |
Number of women who stop any breastfeeding before 6 months postpartum | |||||
 30 trials (32 comparisons) | 3224/5640 (57.2%) | 2491/4149 (60.0%) | RR 0.92 (0.87 to 0.97) | 48 fewer per 1000 (from 18 fewer to 78 fewer) | Low |
Number of women who stop exclusive breastfeeding before 4–6 weeks postpartum | |||||
 31 trials (36 comparisons) | 2314/4337 (53.4%) | 2424/3769 (64.3%) | RR 0.79 (0.72 to 0.87) | 135 fewer per 1000 (from 84 fewer to 180 fewer) | Low |
Number of women who stop exclusive breastfeeding before 6 months postpartum | |||||
 33 trials (36 comparisons) | 3893/5404 (72.0%) | 4478/5182 (86.4%) | RR 0.84 (0.78 to 0.91) | 138 fewer per 1000 (from 78 fewer to 190 fewer) | Low |
Number of women who stop any breastfeeding before 12 months postpartum | |||||
 2 trials | 349/416 (83.9%) | 516/549 (94.0%) | RR 0.88 (0.69 to 1.12) | 113 fewer per 1000 (from 113 more to 291 fewer) | Low |
Number of newborns given prelacteal or additional food, fluids or infant formula within the first 2 days postpartum | |||||
 1 trial | 26/50 (52.0%) | 40/50 (80.0%) | RR 0.65 (0.48 to 0.88) | 280 fewer per 1000 (from 96 fewer to 416 fewer) | Low |
Number of infants fed with bottles during the first 6 months postpartum | |||||
 5 trials | 349/416 (83.9%) | 516/549 (94.0%) | RR 0.88 (0.69 to 1.12) | 113 fewer per 1000 (from 113 more to 291 fewer) | Moderate |