Agalactia
Type: Symptom
Definition
The complete inability to produce breast milk after childbirth.
Clinical Details
The anterior pituitary gland produces prolactin, the hormone strictly necessary for lactation. Because the lactotroph cells are often the most severely damaged during the ischemic event, prolactin levels plummet. The most immediate and classic clinical sign of Sheehan's syndrome is a mother's total failure to initiate or maintain milk production after delivery.