Power outage and CPAP

PST · Post by **PST** » Fri Oct 09, 2009 11:10 am

potholerepairman wrote:" Explanation: The S8 Series II device is intended to be used with special masks (orconnectors)* which have vent holes to allow continuous flow of air out of the mask.When the device is turned on and functioning properly, new air from the deviceflushes the exhaled air out through the mask vent holes. However, when the deviceis not operating, insufficient fresh air will be provided through the mask, and theexhaled air may be rebreathed. Rebreathing of exhaled air for longer than severalminutes can, in some circumstances, lead to suffocation. This applies to mostmodels of CPAP devices"

This is in the warnings and cautions section in the user guide for the autoset 11 and had me scared for sure the first time my eyes saw it.Thankfully it wasn't believed cause of reading lots of post on here about that not being true.Is this Resmeds way to reduce liability? As a rookie reading suffocation and insufficent air was concerning the first time around.

I think it is true, in the sense that ResMed cannot know what mask you will use, and a poorly designed or defective mask could be dangerous. Even then, a person would normally wake up and do whatever it takes to breathe, including pull the mask off. We all have years of proof that hypoxia and hypercapnia will wake a person up enough to fight for breath. But someone who was drunk, or sedated, or weakened by illness might not succeed, so ResMed warns, "in some circumstances." I'm paranoid enough to have spent 15 minutes with the mask on, the blower off, and an oximeter on my finger. I feel satisfied that the Quattro, which is the only mask I've tested, has a suitable anti-asphyxiation valve.

Power outage and CPAP

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