SynthesisThe breast journal2026
Hoffman's Exercise for Breastfeeding Support Among Postnatal Mothers With Nipple Defects: A Scoping Review and Exploratory Meta-Analysis.
Synthesis in The breast journal, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Background: Hoffman's exercise is a widely promoted nonsurgical technique to assist breastfeeding among postpartum mothers with inverted or flat nipples. Prior reviews have suggested benefit but did not account for differences in effect by comparator, nor did they distinguish between-group from within-group change. This limits clinical guidance and planning for rigorous trials. Aim: To present an analytic discussion that is comparator-aware, separates effect types, and foregrounds uncertainty; clarifying what the literature can credibly support and highlighting gaps in study design and reporting standards. Discussion: Across a small and heterogeneous evidence base ( Conclusions and Recommendations: Current evidence neither supports strong effectiveness claims for Hoffman's exercise nor warrants abandoning the technique outright. Clinically, we suggest offering the exercise as part of a broader lactation-support bundle rather than presenting it as a stand-alone, proven or validated intervention. More robust data are needed to determine the clinical effectiveness of the technique.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.