how to clean gear after illness?

[jaybeem]

I have been ill: head cold followed by bacterial lung infection and thrush (from steroid inhaler). Just off antibiotics, but I am still on the thrush lozenges and tapering off prednisone.

I have soaked all my gear in soap and hot water and rinsed with vinegar water then hot water. I boiled my masks with baking soda.

My immune system is so shot that I am worried about reinfecting myself. Is there anything else I can do to make sure that my equipment is clean enough?

[Julie]

Sounds like you've done a very good job and the residual meds in your system (they don't all disappear overnight) plus your immunity (can't be all bad if you're better now) should be more than enough to be good.

[Tatooed Lady]

If you're really freaked, buy new to use til you're back to 100%. Then swap back to the original hose, mask, whatever. And change / wash your filters.

[JDS74]

Here is a link to ResMed procedures in a clinical environment. They should be enough to get rid of anything related to your recent illness.

Otherwise follow the recoommendations in your user guide.

http://www.resmed.com/content/dam/resme ... er_eng.pdf

[archangle]

I suspect this is not nearly as big a problem as you may think it is. The germs are already everywhere, including inside and on your body. If your body gets over the billions of germs already inside you, it can probably deal with reinhaling a few of the germs you've breathed out.

However, a really good cleaning is a good idea anyway.

Do you have spares of your mask, hose, water tank, etc.? It's good to have that anyway, in case of equipment failure. If you haven't already done so, figure out when your insurance will buy new stuff and accumulate at least one set of spares.

Then clean the "contaminated" set of parts really well, and let them sit somewhere and dry for a few weeks.

I dishwash all the appropriate mask parts. Do you have the dishwashable S9 tub? If not, get one. They're not too expensive at cpap.com. I'm not sure the "standard" tank will survive dishwashing, but it can't stand being boiled.

You can also buy Control III disinfectant at cpap.com. I haven't used it, but it's supposed to be good.

If you have an unheated hose, they're pretty cheap. I've bought 4 for $20 of of e-bay. They're not even that expensive at the legit online dealers like our host, cpap.com.

[Sir NoddinOff]

Most people with normal immunological systems develop an immune response to deter re-infection. That's the basis of most inoculation systems involving vaccines. If you stop to think about it, If the human race didn't have this complex adaptive ability, this planet would be devoid of human life. If I were you, I would simply take some basic cleaning precautions and let it go at that.

[jaybeem]

My lungs were in such bad shape that they had to triple the prednisone dose they had put me on to help with my breathing. I am still tapering off of that. So I am immuno-suppressed...which is why I am worried about cleaning extra well.

I had not thought to swap out my equipment. I will replace the mask and hoses and boil the humidifier tank.

Thanks for the suggestions!

[wardmiller]

I had not thought to swap out my equipment. I will replace the mask and hoses and boil the humidifier tank.

Here's how I think about it-- except for the door knobs, sink handles, counter tops, TV remote, telephone, and a zillion other things you have touched while you were ill, what actually has been contaminated in your CPAP world? The CPAP machine has a one-way flow TO your body. That includes the humidifier and hose. The mask processed exhaled air, but the valve prevented it from going into the hose. So the mask is the only CPAP device that might have been contaminated. You've already taken care of that.

Very few "germs" survive outside the host more than a few minutes. Hepatitis is one of the few.

I'd say, don't worry. You pick up a lot more when you grasp the escalator handhold at the Mall, or the Mall door handle!

[Aussiegirl]

Germs like a warm moist environment, make sure to SOAK you equipment in a 1:3 vinegar and water solution for minimum of 30 minutes, DRY it on a towel.

[palerider]

but the valve prevented it from going into the hose.

there is no one way valve... at least, not in any mask/hose/cpap I've ever seen.

however, the positive airflow should keep anything from going any appreciable distance down the hose on exhalation,

[archangle]

My lungs were in such bad shape that they had to triple the prednisone dose they had put me on to help with my breathing. I am still tapering off of that. So I am immuno-suppressed...which is why I am worried about cleaning extra well.

I had not thought to swap out my equipment. I will replace the mask and hoses and boil the humidifier tank.

Thanks for the suggestions!

Once again, don't boil the tank unless you are REALLY sure it's the Dishwashable tank with the black gasket. Probably not even then unless you have a spare tank around.

The newer "standard" tanks DO open up, but WILL melt in boiling water. I've done it myself. (I had a spare tank around, though.)

[wardmiller]

but the valve prevented it from going into the hose.

there is no one way valve... at least, not in any mask/hose/cpap I've ever seen.

however, the positive airflow should keep anything from going any appreciable distance down the hose on exhalation,

On my mask, there is a flapper valve that prevents my breath entering the hose while I have the mask on before I turn on the machine for its positive pressure.

[archangle]

but the valve prevented it from going into the hose.

there is no one way valve... at least, not in any mask/hose/cpap I've ever seen.

however, the positive airflow should keep anything from going any appreciable distance down the hose on exhalation,

Full face masks have a valve, but it's "closed" when the CPAP is running, so that exhaled air can still go back up the hose. When the CPAP isn't running, the valve "opens," but you're still connected to the hose. It's just that there's now an open hole from the mask to outside air as well as the hose.

i.e. no "one way valve" to keep air from flowing back up the tube.

Some people claim that some of the oxygen adapters have a valve of some sort, but I have my doubts that it blocks air from going backward through the hose. The one example oxygen adapter I have has no valve at all.

You need air to go back up the hose because many of us exhale faster than the exhaust vents on the mask leak air during part of our breathing cycle.

[palerider]

On my mask, there is a flapper valve that prevents my breath entering the hose while I have the mask on before I turn on the machine for its positive pressure.

no, there is *not* a flapper that prevents that, there is a flapper that *opens* when there is no pressure to avoid asphyxiation, it's called an anti-asphyxiation valve, for that very reason.

try it, take the hose off the machine, put your finger over the hole, and exhale, you'll have air coming out the hose, the valve is *only* there to keep you from rebreathing co2 if the machine is off... all ffm have them in one form or another.

[palerider]

Some people claim that some of the oxygen adapters have a valve of some sort, but I have my doubts that it blocks air from going backward through the hose.

someone made mention of a checkvalve that PR offers to put *before* the o2 adapter, that is supposed to close to keep o2 from going into their machine, apparently, theirs is more boom likely than the resmeds, which don't mention such things in their manuals.