%0 Journal Article %T Factores asociados a la lactancia materna exclusiva %A Ni£¿o M %A Rosa %A Silva E %A Gioconda %A Atalah S %A Eduardo %J Revista chilena de pediatr¨ªa %D 2012 %I Sociedad Chilena de Pediatr¨ªa %R 10.4067/S0370-41062012000200007 %X introduction: limited information is available regarding factors contributing to exclusive breastfeeding until the sixth month. this information is needed to design appropriate policy interventions. methods: a survey about socio-demographic characteristics, information received, onset and duration of breastfeeding and causes of weaning was applied. factors associated with exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months were determined by multivariate logistic regression. results: 256 mothers attending a public sector hospital and 158 mothers attending a private sector hospital responded to the survey. the following factors were higher in the private sector group: education level, primiparity, cesarean sections and work outside the home (p < 0.02). 45.8% of mothers continued exclusive breastfeeding up to 6 months, with no difference seen between groups. the main causes of weaning were: maternal decision (27.2%), perceived hunger (24.1%), esthetic factors (17.3%) and child's illness (13.0%). exclusive breastfeeding up to 6 months was associated with a previous successful breastfeeding (or 5.4, 95% ci 2.2-13.2), female child (or 5.5 ci 2.5-12.3), lower maternal education (or 5.4 ci 2.4-11.7) and public health system (or 2.1 ci 1.0-4.5). conclusion: weaning is often associated with maternal perceptions rather than objective data. socio-demographic variables influence successful prolonged breastfeeding. better education in health factors and breastfeeding might improve this situation. %K breastfeeding %K weaning %K nutrition %K feeding %K chilhood. %U http://www.scielo.cl/scielo.php?script=sci_abstract&pid=S0370-41062012000200007&lng=en&nrm=iso&tlng=en