Can Your CPAP Make You Sick?

CPAP Device Maintenance - Basics

As said, the CPAP device is fairly simple in design and use, not many things you should worry about. Of course, the machine itself (the motor and inner parts) shouldn’t be your worry; in case there is some issue with it, it’s always the best option to take it to the authorized service shop.

What is there to be maintained? Every PAP machine contains 3 main parts: a motor/compressor (the machine itself), a hose, and a mask. Other parts are air filter(s), humidifier (in some models), mask straps, CPAP tubing connectors, hose connectors (some of the other parts might not be listed with all machines, but mostly it is the ones we mentioned).

All CPAP device parts are considered expendable and need to be maintained and replaced on time:

The main principle and parts are pretty much the same as in the first machine produced by Dr. Sullivan 40 years ago. The main part of the modern CPAP machine is the motor/air compressor and it is used to generate a continuous stream of pressurized air (room air, not oxygen!) that travels through an air filter into a flexible tube. This flexible tube is connected to the CPAP face mask via a CPAP hose connector and delivers filtered/purified air under (prescribed) pressure into the mask that's sealed around the patient's nose and mouth (or just one of those two, depending on a mask type).

How To Make Sure Your CPAP Device Is Safe To Use?

We said it before, but it's always good to refresh this: if not maintained properly and cleaned regularly, CPAP devices and equipment can make you sick! Humid and hot air and the inside surface of the CPAP mask and tube are a perfect breeding ground for germs, bacteria, viruses, fungus, mold... It sounds scary (and it is), but it is an easy solvable thing – just need to make sure that you keep your CPAP equipment clean and sanitized.

How to tell your CPAP is “not good”? If your CPAP equipment is smelly, if it has that musty smell, it should be the first sign that your CPAP is most likely already contaminated with bacteria, mildew, and/or mold! Also, if you often experience other symptoms such as a sore throat, respiratory infections, nasal congestions, lung irritations, sudden skin irritation, or similar, you should question the cleanliness of your CPAP equipment.

How to keep your CPAP safe to use?  Just follow these 3 simple rules:

1) Clean and sanitize regularly,

2) Replace parts as recommended by the manufacturer3) Keep your CPAP exclusively yours (avoid lending your CPAP equipment to anyone at any point). 

How to clean your CPAP? You can do this in two ways: manually or automatically.

Manual CPAP Cleaning

Wash the mask, water chamber, and tubing every morning; and once a week, wash the headgear and the filter, and the water chamber. Here are the steps you should follow:1) Disassemble your CPAP machine. Unplug the machine from the power socket and detach the hose and the mask. You also need to disassemble the headgear and all smaller components.2) The machine itself doesn’t need to be washed. Only replace the filters if needed, or wash them, and wipe the machine with a dry cloth and you are done with this step.3) Mix water (warm water) and soap, or you can use white vinegar for more sanitation. Avoid using hot water because it can damage some elements on your equipment.4) Soak the hose and the mask in the mixture. You can also soak the humidifier and all other, small components. Let them stay there for 30-40 minutes.5) Next step, you need to remove these from the water/vinegar solution and rinse them with cold water. Use a dry cloth to wipe them and make sure there is no debris or anything that doesn’t look clean on the components!6) The final step is to let the parts air dry. You may need a few hours to complete this process because all parts must be 100% dry before use to avoid growing mold and germs! If this sounds time-consuming and like a lot of work, it's because it is like that. There are no shortcuts if you want to clean your CPAP manually! But, on the other side, you can use one of the automatic sanitizers…

Automatic CPAP Cleaning

In general, we differ 2 types of automatic CPAP cleaners: CPAP ozone Cleaner (CPAP Ozone sanitizer) and UV Cleaner.

As mentioned in more detail in one of our articles before, although both Ozone and UV have sanitizing effect, and are simple to use, ozone sanitizers seem to have better, or maybe more precisely said, more consistent results (UV sanitizers can be less effective if UV lamps used are not strong enough, and since they are simple to produce with cheap UV lamps, they often prove to be not enough effective). 

The whole process of cleaning/sanitizing with Ozone cpap cleaner lasts 30 minutes and is super simple… Just need to put CPAP equipment into sanitizing bag, close the bag, and plug the sanitizer device into the adapter on the bag (PrimeClean® CPAP Ozone Sanitizer used as an example). The sanitizer device itself is small and portable and works on its rechargeable battery power. Ozone, activated oxygen, is used in the sanitizing processes in the medical industry for years; its proven sanitizing efficiency makes it an easy choice if you are considering buying an automatic CPAP cleaner.

Besides the possible issues with unclean CPAP, using CPAP with wrong pressure settings or not as prescribed/suggested, can also have a negative influence on your health.

The key thing you must do is, at the moment you notice symptoms of respiratory problems as described above, react as early as possible; the simplest and first step should be to check and clean your CPAP equipment.

CPAP Device Is A Sleep Apnea Prescription Therapy

CPAP device is currently the most effective sleep apnea prescription therapy. CPAP device is very useful and is solving sleep apnea symptoms with high efficiency, but like every medicine, if not used as prescribed or as suggested by the manufacturer, it can cause (more) harm. Keeping your CPAP device clean and maintained, replacing parts as suggested by the manufacturer, and daily sanitizing will keep your CPAP safe, and will extend its high-quality working level.

Whether you choose to clean and sanitize your CPAP manually or automatically, it is important that you do it regularly and do not skip steps.