Production of theses and dissertations about breastfeeding in graduate nursing programs

Objective: To characterize the theses and dissertations with a breastfeeding theme in Brazilian post-graduate nursing programs, between 1999 and 2010. Methods: A bibliometric study was conducted by consulting the thesis database of the Coordination of Improvement of Higher Education; 96 theses and dissertations were identified, of which 25% were doctoral dissertations and 75% master's theses. Among these, 93% were academic master's and 7% were professional master's. Results: The concentration of production resided in the post-graduate nursing programs in the South and Southeastern regions. Three faculty members advised 24.9% of the studies. It was noted that 63.5% of the studies were qualitative in nature, 29.2% were quantitative in nature, and 7.3% used both approaches. The theoretical - philosophical reference that was the most used was phenomenology, and the method was content analysis. Conclusion: The results showed the importance of this theme in advanced studies. Overcoming dogmas and ideologies about breastfeeding in favor of science-based positions is a priority when proposing advances in nursing care to promote breastfeeding.