Dennis has been using a CPAP machine for sleep apnea for nine years. It is a condition where the patient will stop breathing during sleep. I wonder how many people in times past died in their sleep and it was listed as natural causes . . . Hello! From not breathing – I guess that is as close to natural causes as you can get. Those who snore and those who live with someone that snores know that many times there could be a long duration where the person snoring is not breathing . . . sleep apnea. It does not allow for a restful night of rest regardless of how much sleep the person thinks they are getting. It is exhausting for the heart having to rouse the person by a hard jerk to get the body to respond. Dennis went through the sleep study by staying overnight in the hospital being hooked up to multiple machines giving readings. It was severe durations during the hours of sleep that Dennis stopped breathing. Dennis never goes to bed without the mask on. Dennis never travels without packing the CPAP.
Keeping the product clean is a pain. The long tube that is hooked to a humidifier via the machine that causes the burst of air that rouses the patient is corrugated. They have not as yet manufactured a brush long enough to properly clean it. The gasket that is worn each night is of a latex that is meant to be taken off the hard plastic and cleaned. The soft gasket has multiple pliable areas that are hard to clean.
Today we went to Mankato to the medical supply store and we purchased a “So Clean 2.” It uses activated oxygen with oxidizing properties for complete sanitizing. Each morning Dennis will be cleaning his unit and it is timed and will be ready for him to use by bedtime. Totally cleaning of the hose, the humidifier and the face mask. I read reviews for hours on the Internet. We thought about this long and hard until we found out Dennis’ nephew has been using this every day for over a year. Never needing to fill our sink again with hot water that has bleach and non-detergent soap and then getting it all rinsed is going to be wonderful. It is a 30-day refundable product.
Prior to Dennis having this last carotid surgery, the lung X-ray indicated several spots of congestion in his right lung. That played right into the fact that Dennis usually has phlegm to get rid of . . . which is not socially acceptable. When I have heard him sneezing or having a cough into the face mask during the night, it meant an automatic cleaning the next day. This is so worth a try. Personally I cannot imagine having to wear a mask over my face every night much like a gas mask. Putting that aside it would bring peace of mind that the unit is totally cleaned for every night’s use.
We did do some errands after the medical store and we are home safe and sound and happy to be home after a busy day in the big town.