Those who suffer from sleep apnea will usually require a CPAP machine to help them eliminate their symptoms. CPAP is short for “continuous positive airway pressure.” The machine provides the patient with a continuous flow of positive pressure air that keeps their airways open while they sleep.
What is Sleep Apnea?
Those with sleep apnea suffer from airways that collapse at the backs of their throats when they sleep. This results in periods of up to a minute or more without oxygen, which then wakes the patient so they can breathe properly. Some episodes are quick and not remembered, so the patient thinks they slept when they did not, while others are longer and fully wake the patient, even briefly.
The result is a continual lack of good sleep, which can lead to other health issues on its own. The CPAP machine corrects this and allows a better quality of life for the sleep apnea patient.
How Does the CPAP Machine Help?
With the pressurized air from the CPAP machine, the patient’s airways are forcibly kept open throughout sleep. This allows a better quality of sleep and better overall health and emotional wellbeing as a result. The air is delivered through a mask the patient wears while sleeping. The mask is attached to a machine that generates the air and blows it through the mask.
Different people require different amounts of air pressure to get good results from a CPAP machine. The exact amount of pressure someone needs will be determined during a sleep study, where a variety of CPAP masks are used on a patient.
The CPAP eliminates the symptoms of sleep apnea but is not a cure. Therefore, the machine and its use become part of the lifestyle of the patient. Keeping the machine and mask clean is essential to good lifestyle management with a CPAP machine. Soclean CPAP cleaner and sanitizer is one of several good product choices for CPAP machine users.