The problems with many prescribed solutions for patients with sleep apnea is that they are dull. Given the abundance of dramatic medical interventions with which the medical industry and hence the patients are blessed, this is a shocking admission. Yet sadly its true. Modern medicine is a prolific producer of a wide range of treatment plans for sleep disorders, but the bulk of them are tedious to follow, vacuous to understand and dangerous in the long run. Some treatments are using too many ingredients, failing to design for effectiveness and emphasizing only on the short-term relief. Your Maumee, OH dentist can help.

CPAP in Maumee, OH

With this knowledge, it is common for a patient in Maumee, OH to ask if Continuous Positive Airway Pressure or CPAP devices used for sleep apnea are dangerous. The machine is used to clear any breathing obstruction that is causing sleep apnea, and during this process, it forces air into the airway. This in turn allows the person to sleep without disruption. The airway pressure device is the air supplying agent, and however much this device tries to supply the air, at its heart it is just making sure that ample amount of air is provided while the person is asleep. Most of the time the person using this device is not aware of CPAP’s power in the night, to see for themselves the good work the machine does. So the observers need to be able to take the benefits of the machine in results, to paint images of its effectiveness. The overall answer to the above question – whether this airway pressure device is dangerous – is no, as long as the device is working properly and utilized appropriately.

Device Misuse and Side-effects

This means, misuse of airway pressure device can be dangerous, sometimes fatal too. While there are risks associated with electronic equipment of every kind, it is safe to say that airway pressure device machines are not completely free from side-effects. So, the three main obstacles for the device’s functionality are:

  • Too much air pressure
  • Electric shock from wetness
  • Irregular maintenance

One of the known and obvious dangers of misused airway pressure device device is too much air pressure. Pressure level higher than prescribed may cause hemorrhaging and stroke. In minor cases, the patient may suffer from headaches that may recur without warning or after the device is detached. In all these instances, the airway pressure device should be examined for accuracy in reading and functioning as well. Another danger caused by mishandling this device is electric shock associated with the machine coming in contact with water. If this safety precaution is not followed, the machine won’t even start. Patients should be very good at handling the device, but sadly, in practice, some are not good at it at all. In their role as patients many people will spend more money in replacing the burnt electronics as a result of water intrusion. Perhaps more than any other dangers, this is where people could save the device and most easily improve its effectiveness.

If you care for the device well, maintain it regularly and give it a clean environment in which to work, it will invariably function better and stay that way for longer.