Eye infection

[ilvsleep]

I tried to search this topic and didn't find an answer so here goes... I started with a cold 2 days ago and last night cpap seemed very uncomfotable so I took off the pillows half way through the night. Today I woke with a sore and goopy eye. It looks like a stye inside my eyelid. Should I attempt to use cpap tonight or should I wait and see a doc in the morning. I have only had the cpap a week and have been very careful to keep things clean.

[harry33]

eye problems are usually caused by air being blown on the eyes from leaks along top of mask, despite people supposedly sleeping with eyes shut.....however theres some talk of high pressure air being blown the wrong way along the tear ducts, there are said to usually be one way flaps to prevent this
if any work has been done on the tear ducts earlier this can lead to problems

nurses say they see patients sleeping in hospitals with eyes half open ??

[brazospearl]

I had a similar experience when I developed an upper respiratory infection. I've always been prone to dry eyes, but they both became infected with the combination of cpap & virus. Once the prescription eye drops had done their magic, I started using Refresh Optive drops during the day and GenTeal night-time ointment at night. There are several good brands of these products out there, just be sure you get the ones for "lubricating" as opposed to "red eye relief," which won't do the trick. I also use a dark-colored wide stretchy headband across my eyes as a sleep mask--it fits better than any "real" sleep masks I've tried--to help keep my eyes shut all night and the air out. Your situation is annoying but easily fixable.

[ilvsleep]

Great advise! Thank you!!

[robmax]

And if your mask leaks air into your eyes, get a different mask that doesn't.

[brazospearl]

It might not be that the mask is leaking into your eyes. Air blowing into your nose can cause eye irritation. The tube that drains from your eyes into your nose gets air in it if your therapy is effective. There's a procedure to plug that passageway, but I think that sounds pretty gross, and the drops and ointments are doing the trick for now.

[DreamStalker]

If it is an infection, you need to go in and see a doc to see what it is and get the right medication/treatment for it.

If on the other hand it is just eye irritation, then eye lubrication drops and keeping CPAP air from drying out your eye(s) would be the solution. You could try wearing an eye mask for sleeping.