Scientists at the University of Southern California (USC) have pioneered an innovative device designed to revolutionize breastfeeding safety for newborns by integrating real-time biochemical analysis into a common nursing accessory. This groundbreaking development focuses on a lactation pad embedded with sensing technology capable of continuously monitoring breast milk for the presence of acetaminophen, a widely used painkiller often prescribed to manage postpartum discomfort. Published on May 7, 2025, in the journal Device by Cell Press, this experimental study presents an unprecedented approach to safeguarding infant health by directly tracking drug transfer through breast milk during everyday use.
The challenge addressed by this research lies in the fact that acetaminophen, while generally considered safe at recommended doses, poses significant risks if consumed in excess. It is known to be one of the leading causes of acute liver failure in children, often necessitating liver transplants due to toxicity. Despite the recognized risks, there has been a lack of real-time, personalized tools to help breastfeeding parents manage their medication safely without disrupting their daily routines. The USC team’s inventive solution integrates microscopic electrodes and fluidic channels into a standard lactation pad—an item lactating individuals frequently wear to absorb natural breast milk leakage—effectively transforming it into a wearable drug-monitoring sensor.
Maral Mousavi, assistant professor of biomedical engineering at USC and the study’s first author, emphasizes the novelty of this technology: “Our device represents a major innovation as the first wearable tool for direct biochemical analysis in breast milk. We envisage that this lactation pad with embedded real-time sensing capability will empower parents with actionable health data, optimizing maternal and infant health outcomes.” The device’s design means that it operates passively; parents continue their routine activities without needing to provide additional samples or go through cumbersome processes, a major advantage over traditional milk testing methods.
Typically, testing breast milk for drug content involves collecting samples at home and sending them to laboratories, a process fraught with delays and inconvenience. Most mail-in testing kits demand specialized collection procedures and typically take days to weeks before results are available—an impractical timeline when timely decision-making about breastfeeding and medication is critical. By contrast, the smart lactation pad delivers continuous, immediate insights about acetaminophen levels throughout the day, giving parents and healthcare providers a dynamic picture of how the drug is present in breast milk in real time.
The research team’s motivation stemmed from a personal experience within their ranks. A graduate student, upon giving birth, was prescribed acetaminophen for postpartum pain. This real-world scenario sparked an awareness of the gap in available technology to help breastfeeding parents monitor the safety of their milk actively. This device was born from the desire to bridge this gap and provide a user-friendly, reliable means to inform families about drug exposure risks, potentially guiding decisions such as the duration and timing of breastfeeding sessions or whether to discard milk with high drug concentrations.
One of the key scientific innovations underpinning the lactation pad is the integration of electrodes sensitive to acetaminophen within flexible microfluidic channels embedded in the pad itself. As breast milk naturally seeps through the pad during feeding or milk leakage, these sensors detect and quantify the concentration of acetaminophen molecules present. This signaling is processed by an electronic module attached discreetly to the pad, which wirelessly transmits data to a smartphone application, offering parents an accessible interface to monitor the safety of their milk in real-time.
Beyond simply facilitating safer breastfeeding practices, this technology opens new avenues for scientific inquiry into the pharmacokinetics of drug transfer into breast milk—a complex and poorly understood area in pediatric pharmacology. Continuous monitoring can provide detailed temporal profiles of drug concentrations, enabling researchers to refine guidelines and safety recommendations for medication use during lactation. This information is critical because individual variation in drug metabolism and milk composition can result in widely differing exposures for breastfed infants.
Although acetaminophen was the initial target drug for this technology, the platform allows for adaptability. The research team has already demonstrated the feasibility of modifying the lactation pad to detect other clinically relevant biomarkers in milk, such as glucose. This advancement hints at a future where wearable sensing lactation pads could help manage gestational diabetes or other maternal health concerns by providing continuous biochemical feedback, signaling a new era of personalized healthcare for nursing parents.
Despite its promising benefits, the device has some current limitations. It relies on natural breast milk leakage for sampling, which may restrict its use among mothers experiencing minimal milk leakage. Moreover, due to its disposable nature, a fresh lactation pad must be used for each new monitoring session, potentially increasing cost and generating waste. Recognizing these challenges, the USC team is actively developing a version of the device compatible with pumped milk, offering a more flexible and practical approach for parents who express milk rather than rely on leakage.
This pioneering work reflects a broader trend in medical technology focused on integrating wearables and biosensors into everyday objects to enhance health monitoring with minimal disruption to the user’s routine. By embedding sophisticated sensing architectures into an item as familiar and unassuming as a lactation pad, the USC researchers have demonstrated how innovation rooted in real-life needs can translate into impactful health solutions. The device carries promise not only for safer medication use in breastfeeding but also for broad applications in maternal-infant health monitoring.
The potential social impact of this smart lactation pad extends well beyond the clinical setting. It offers empowering autonomy to lactating families, allowing them to make safer, evidence-based decisions about breastfeeding and medication use without over-reliance on generalized safety charts or delayed lab results. Such empowerment is vital, given the delicate balance new parents must navigate between managing their own postpartum health and protecting their infants. This development exemplifies patient-centered care in its most practical form.
As this technology continues to evolve, the implications for public health policy and clinical practice guidelines are significant. Real-time data on drug transfer dynamics could inform more nuanced breastfeeding recommendations, potentially reducing unnecessary cessation of breastfeeding or overcautious discarding of nutritious milk. It may also aid clinicians in tailoring medication regimens that balance maternal pain management with infant safety, fostering more holistic postpartum care.
In conclusion, the USC-developed smart lactation pad is a transformative step in breastfeeding safety technology. By harnessing wearable sensor integration, microfluidics, and real-time data analytics, it offers a novel solution to a pervasive healthcare challenge. Future refinements, including expanded drug and biomarker detection and adaptation for pumped milk sampling, promise to broaden its utility, making personalized, continuous breast milk monitoring an accessible reality for families worldwide.
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**Subject of Research:** People
**Article Title:** Safer breastfeeding with a wearable sensor for maternal acetaminophen transfer through breast milk
**News Publication Date:** 7-May-2025
**Web References:** http://www.cell.com/device/home
**Doi Referans:** 10.1016/j.device.2025.100774
**Resim Credits:** Mousavi et al., Device
**Anahtar Kelimeler:** acetaminophen in breast milk, breastfeeding safety innovations, device for monitoring breast milk quality, infant safety technologies, lactation pad with sensing technology, newborn health monitoring devices, postpartum pain management, real-time breast milk monitoring, safety of breast milk, smart health devices for parents, smart lactation pads technology, USC research on lactation
