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The Faculty
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Dr Lisa Amir
MBBS (Monash), MMed (Melb), PhD (La Trobe), IBCLC, FABM
Associate Professor
 
Email: l.amir@latrobe.edu.au
Telephone: +61 3 8341 8577
 

Lisa Amir is a medical practitioner with a long-standing interest in women's health. Having qualified as a lactation consultant in 1989, Lisa continues to work in breastfeeding medicine at the Royal Women's Hospital and as a private practitioner at Medical One at QV in the city. She is conducting research in the area of breastfeeding – from rates and determinants of breastfeeding, to nipple and breast pain in breastfeeding women, to GPs’ knowledge and attitudes towards the use of medicines for breastfeeding women. Lisa is Editor-in-Chief of the online journal, International Breastfeeding Journal. Website: www.internationalbreastfeedingjournal.com

 
MAJOR RESEARCH INTERESTS

Breastfeeding, women’s health

 
CURRENT PROJECTS
 
SILC: Supporting breastfeeding In Local Communities – a cluster randomised trial (ACTRN12611000898954)
Team: Helen McLachlan, Lisa Amir, Della Forster, Rhonda Small, Meabh Cullinane, Touran Shafiei
Funding: Department of Education and Early Childhood Development
Status: Ethics approvals sought, project development in progress
 
Prevalence and prevention of mastitis in lactating women
Team: Lisa Amir, Judith Lumley, Suzanne Garland
Funding: NHMRC Public Health PhD Scholarship; Medical Research Foundation for Women and Babies
Status: Publications accepted - see below*
 
The role of micro-organisms ( S. aureus & C. albicans ) in the pathogenesis of breast pain and infection in lactating women
Team: Lisa Amir, Suzanne Garland, Judith Lumley, Susan Donath, Sepehr Tabrizi
Funding: NHMRC Project Grant, 2009-2010
Status: Ethics approval obtained from La Trobe University & Royal Women's Hospital and Frances Perry House. Recruitment commenced October 2009
 
Medications and breastfeeding women: Knowledge, attitudes and practices of GPs
Team: Lisa Amir, Marie Pirotta, Molika In, Jeanne Daly
Funding: Faculty of Health Sciences Research Grant
Status: Postal survey of GPs and in-depth interviews conducted 2007/2008. Two publications and report (see below).
 
Women's' attitudes and experiences of breastfeeding – does maternal weight make a difference?
Team: Lisa Amir, Della Forster, Kate Stern, Joanne Rayner
Funding: La Trobe Research Grants Scheme
Status:

Focus groups and in-depth interviews in progress

 
Women’s experience of breastfeeding, expressing and using breast pumps
Team: Sarah Clemons, Lisa Amir
Funding: Nil
Status:

Online survey completed, one paper published.

 

MILC: Mothers and Infants Lactation Cohort study

Team:

Della Forster, Lisa Amir, Helen McLachlan, Anita Moorhead, Helene Johns, Kerri McEgan, Chris Scott, Rachael Ford

Funding: Faculty grant, PhD scholarship
Status:

Recruitment and data collection

 

DIABETES & ANTENATAL MILK EXPRESSING (DAME): A RANDOMISED CONTROLLED TRIAL

Team:

Della Forster, Susan Jacobs, Lisa Amir, Peter Davis, Susan Walker, Kerri McEgan, Gillian Opie

Funding: NHMRC Project Grant (2011-2014)
Status:

Protocol developed, seeking ethics approval

 
PUBLICATIONS (Selected)

Amir LH, Cullinane M, Garland SM, Tabrizi SN, Donath SM, Bennett CM, Cooklin AR, Fisher JRW, Payne MS. The role of micro-organisms (Staphylococcus aureus and Candida albicans) in the pathogenesis of breast pain and infection in lactating women: study protocol. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth 2011; 11:54.
http://www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/1471-2393-11-54.pdf

Taft AJ, Hobbs M, Hussainy S, AMIR LH, Stewart S, Smith AMA, Shelley JM, Chapman C. Unintended pregnancy in Australia: what more can we do? Med J Aust. 2011;195(4):166-67. http://www.mja.com.au/public/issues/195_04_150811/taf10270_fm.html

Amir LH, Pirotta MV, Raval M. Evidence-based guidelines for use of medicines by breastfeeding women. Aust Fam Physician; 2011; 40(9):684–90. http://www.racgp.org.au/afp/201109/201109Amir.pdf

Amir LH, James JP, Kelso G, Moorhead AM. Accreditation of midwife lactation consultants to perform infant tongue-tie release. Int J Nurs Pract (accepted 15 June 2011).

Jayawickrama HJ, Amir LH, Pirotta MV. GPs’ decision-making when prescribing medicines for breastfeeding women: Content analysis of a survey. BMC Research Notes 2010; 3: 82.
http://www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/1756-0500-3-82.pdf

Clemons SN, Amir LH. Breastfeeding women’s experience of expressing: A descriptive study. J Hum Lact 2010; 26(3): 258-65.

Hobbs MK, Taft AJ, Amir LH, Stewart K, Shelley JM, Smith AM, Chapman CB, Hussainy SY. Pharmacy access to the emergency contraceptive pill (ECP): a national survey of a random sample of Australian women. Contraception 2011; 83: 151-58.

Hussainy SY, Stewart K, Chapman CB, Taft AJ, Amir LH, Hobbs MK, Shelley JM, Smith AM. Provision of the emergency contraceptive pill (ECP) without prescription: attitudes and practices of pharmacists in Australia. Contraception 2011; 83: 159-66.

Hobbs M, Taft A, Amir LH. The emergency contraceptive pill (ECP) rescheduled: a focus group study of women's knowledge, attitudes and experiences. J Fam Plann Reprod Health Care 2009; 35(2): 87-91.

Amir LH, Pirotta MV. Medicines for breastfeeding women: a postal survey of knowledge, attitudes and practices of general practitioners in Victoria (Letter). Med J Aust 2009; 191(2):126.

Amir LH, Donath SM. Socioeconomic status and rates of breastfeeding in Australia: evidence from the 1995, 2001 and 2004/5 National Health Surveys. Med J Aust, 2008;189(5):254-56.
http://www.mja.com.au/public/issues/189_05_010908/ami11480_fm.pdf

Donath SM, Amir LH. Maternal obesity and initiation and duration of breastfeeding: data from the longitudinal study of Australian children. Matern Child Nutr 2008;4(3):163-70.

Cooklin AR, Donath SM, Amir LH. Maternal employment and breastfeeding: results from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children. Acta Paediatr, 2008;97(5):620-23.

Donath SM, Amir LH. The effect of gestation on initiation and duration of breastfeeding. Arch Dis Child, 2008; 2008; 93(6):F448-50).

Chin LY, Amir LH. Survey of patient satisfaction with the Breastfeeding Education and Support Services of The Royal Women’s Hospital, Melbourne. BMC Health Serv Res, 2008;8:83.
http://www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/1472-6963-8-83.pdf

Amir LH, The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine Protocol Committee. ABM clinical protocol #4: Mastitis. Revision, May 2008. Breastfeed Med, 2008;3(3):177-80.

Panjaitan M, Amir LH, Costa A-M, Rudland E, Tabrizi S. PCR in detection of Candida albicans for confirmation of clinical diagnosis of nipple thrush (Letter). Breastfeed Med, 2008;3(3):185-87.

Amir LH, Forster DA, Lumley J, McLachlan H. A descriptive study of mastitis in Australian breastfeeding women: incidence and determinants BMC Public Health 2007; 7:62.*
http://www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/1471-2458-7-62.pdf

Amir LH. Medicines and breastfeeding: information is available on safe use (Letter). Med J Aust, 2007; 186(9):485. (Correction published 2007, 186 (11): 606).
http://www.mja.com.au/public/issues/186_09_070507/matter_arising_070507_fm.pdf

Amir LH, Donath S. A systematic review of maternal obesity and breastfeeding intention, initiation and duration. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth, 2007;7:9.
http://www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/1471-2393-7-9.pdf

Amir LH, Lumley J. Women’s experience of lactational mastitis – ‘I have never felt worse’. Aust Fam Physician, 2006;35(9):745-47.*
http://www.racgp.org.au/afp/200609/20060906amir1.pdf

Amir LH. Breastfeeding: managing ‘supply’ issues. Aust Fam Physician 2006;35(9):686-89.
http://www.racgp.org.au/afp/200609/20060906amir.pdf

Amir LH, Garland SM, Lumley J. A case-control study of mastitis: nasal carriage of Staphylococcus aureus. BMC Fam Pract, 2006;7:57.*
http://www.biomedcentral.com/content/pdf/1471-2296-7-57.pdf

Amir LH, James JP, Donath SM. Reliability of the Hazelbaker Assessment Tool for Lingual Frenulum Function. Int Breastfeed J, 2006;1:3.
http://www.internationalbreastfeedingjournal.com/content/pdf/1746-4358-1-3.pdf

Syahlul, DE, Amir LH. Emergency contraception: knowledge, attitudes and practices of medical practitioners in Indonesia. BMC Women’s Health, 2005;5:3.

Amir LH, Forster D, McLachlan H, Lumley J. Incidence of breast abscess in lactating women: Report from an Australian cohort. BJOG, 2004;111(12):1378-81.*

Donath SM, Amir LH, ALSPAC Study Team. The relationship between maternal smoking and breastfeeding duration after adjustment for maternal infant feeding intention. Acta Paediatr, 2004;93(11):1514-18.

Amir LH, Lumley J, Garland S. A failed RCT to determine if antibiotics prevent mastitis: Cracked nipples colonized with Staphylococcus aureus: A randomized treatment trial [ISRCTN65289389]. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth, 2004;4:19.*

Amir LH. Breast pain in lactating women – mastitis or something else? Aust Fam Physician, 2003;32(3):141-45. (Invited article)*

Editorials

Amir LH. Social theory and breastfeeding. Int Breastfeed J 2011: 6:7.
http://www.internationalbreastfeedingjournal.com/content/pdf/1746-4358-6-7.pdf

Amir LH, Ingram J. Health professionals' advice for breastfeeding problems: Not good enough! Int Breastfeed J, 2008;3:22 (Editorial).
http://www.internationalbreastfeedingjournal.com/content/pdf/1746-4358-3-22.pdf

Beasley A, Amir LH. Infant feeding, poverty and human development. Int Breastfeed J, 2007;2:14 (Editorial).
http://www.internationalbreastfeedingjournal.com/content/pdf/1746-4358-2-14.pdf

Beasley A, Amir LH. Policy on infant formula industry funding, support or sponsorship of articles submitted for publication. Int Breastfeed J, 2007;2:5 (Editorial).
http://www.internationalbreastfeedingjournal.com/content/pdf/1746-4358-2-5.pdf

Amir LH. International Breastfeeding Journal: Introducing a new journal. Int Breastfeed J 2006;1:1 (Editorial).
http://www.internationalbreastfeedingjournal.com/content/pdf/1746-4358-1-1.pdf

Book sections and other publications

Sulaiman Z, Amir LH, Liamputtong P. Infant feeding practices: Rates, risks of not breastfeeding and factors influencing breastfeeding. Human Nature, Early Experience and the Environment of Evolutionary Adaptedness. Narvaez D, Panksepp J, Schore A, Gleason T (Eds). Oxford University Press (to be published in 2011).

Amir LH. Medicines for breastfeeding women: risky business? (Book chapter). Nueland WG (Ed). Breastfeeding: Methods, Benefits to the Infant and Mother and Difficulties. Hauppauga, NY; Nova Publishers, 2010: 129-41.
Open access: https://www.novapublishers.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=15585

Cooklin AR, Donath SM, Amir LH. Breastfeeding and maternal employment: Current Australian evidence and future interventions (Book chapter). Nueland WG (Ed). Breastfeeding: Methods, Benefits to the Infant and Mother and Difficulties. Hauppauga, NY; Nova Publishers, 2010: 143-53.

Amir LH, Livingstone VH. Management of common lactation and breastfeeding problems (Book chapter). Management of Breast Diseases. Jatoi I, Kaufmann M (Eds). Heidelberg; Springer, 2010: 77-103.

Jayawickrama H, Amir L, Moorhead A. Bacteria in powdered infant formula: New guidelines for preparation and use to reduce risk of infection. Hot Topic, Lactation Resource Centre, March 2009.

Amir LH, Clements F, Walsh A. Breastfeeding. Check program, September 2007.

Amir L. Lactation and feeding, and Breastfeeding difficulties. In: Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Women’s Health. O’Connor V, Kovacs G, (eds). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2003: 302-305, 379-381.

Reports

Amir LH, Forster DA, McLachlan HL, Moorhead AM, Chamberlain CR, McKay HJ. Breastfeeding in Victoria: A Report. July 2010.
http://www.education.vic.gov.au/healthwellbeing/childyouth/breastfeeding/default.htm

Amir LH, Pirotta MV. Medicines for breastfeeding women: a postal survey of knowledge, attitudes and practices of general practitioners in Victoria, Australia. Mother & Child Health Research, August 2010.
Download Report

 
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Content Approved by: Director, Mother and Child Health Research
Page maintained by: Administrator
Last Updated: January 24, 2012