One common complaint among CPAP users is that they get sinus and ear infections. They are more likely to suffer bronchitis than the general population. The constant mucous surplus created by your body in an attempt to fight against infection can be almost as disruptive as the sleep apnea that CPAP is designed to cure. These infections are the result of exposure to the micro-organisms that breed on the mask and hose of the CPAP machine. With daily use, the CPAP machine can host a dangerous menagerie of bacteria, fungi, and viruses that feed on the skin, mucous, and oils from your body that accumulate on the mask.
Then, once these populations have been breeding all day, the CPAP machine becomes a delivery system that pushes them inside your body. The positive airway pressure makes sure these micro-organisms are forced throughout your otolaryngal cavity. The inside of your ears, your throat, even your lungs are all seeded with a breeding population, making it highly likely that the populations will take hold. This is made even more likely as a result of the drying of your mucous membranes that can be a side effect of CPAP treatment.
To avoid the dangers of the CPAP machine, it is essential that you maintain an impeccable cleaning routine for the mask and hose. It is often advisable that you have several sets of hoses and masks so that you can rotate them and clean them in soap and water and completely dry them between uses.
Another option is the use of oral appliance therapy, which not only fosters less in the way of bacterial and other micro-organismal populations, but is easier to clean, and, even if it becomes populated, does not give these infectious disease organisms a free ride into your lungs. Most people prescribed CPAP therapy can actually get as good or better results from oral appliance therapy, without this health-threatening side effect.
To learn more about how oral appliance therapy can be healthier than CPAP, contact Dr. Ira Shapira at the Snoring and Sleep Apnea Treatment Center today.