Bronchitis / Pneumonia

[Sleepy Tiger]

Hi everyone,

I'm relaxing at home today fighting off a bout of pneumonia. On September 1, I got a "new" replacement CPAP machine (it had around 40 hours of run-time on it when I picked it up) along with a new chamber, hose and mask from my DME. I started getting congested the next day, but ignored it & went on vacation for Labor Day. The next Saturday (Sept. 10th), I went to the emergency clinic since my chest congestion hadn't gone away. The doctor diagnosed me with bronchitis, prescribed a Z-pack, prednisone and an inhaler, and sent me on my merry way.

Still having symptoms, I went to my internist this Monday (Sept. 19th), who diagnosed me with "atypical" pneumonia (I guess more akin to "walking" pneumonia). I'm on Levoquin and a steroid inhaler. I told her about my "new" CPAP machine, knowing that correlation is not causation. We're operating under the assumption that it isn't caused by the "new" CPAP machine right now. While I do understand that correlation is not causation, I also understand the concept of Occam's razor. Chest x-rays were negative for cancer, by the way. I've been good about weekly cleaning, too.

What do all of you think? I'm concerned because I don't feel any different after two days on Levoquin, which I understand is pretty powerful stuff. My worry is that the DME didn't properly clean the machine before giving it to me.

-Patrick

[nanwilson]

Is it perhaps you have your humidifier set too high..thus causing extra moisture in the airways???????????????? The doctors are the best bet for this question, and you are doing that. Sometimes finding the cause of something can only be done with the elimination of things one at a time.

[Perrybucsdad]

Did you get a "replacement" mask that might not have been cleaned as well as it could have been? I came down with a good ole cold two days after I went to the DME and tried on a whole bunch of masks and got my machine (my machine had 0 hours and was brand new, but the masks had been cleaned and used previously) and sort of wondered if there was a correlation.

[Mary Z]

It would truely be a sorry DME that would give you a machine used by another person without proper cleaning. It would leave them open to all kind of liablility. Is there a tech there you can talk to about their methods of cleaning to be sure the machine was cleaned properly?
I'm glad you are not automatically assuming the new machine is the cause of your illness.
It can take some time for the antibiotics to kick in, hang in there. These infections can be very stubborn.
Good luck, keep us posted.

[Pugsy]

You know if the infection is viral....antibiotics won't help. At best they prevent another bacterial bug from taking hold.
Chances of anything being transmitted via the machine are remote. Think of modes of transmission. A lot of really freaky coincidences would have to occurred. Not completely impossible but highly improbable.
Are you using your own humidifier (or different one with the loaner)? I assume you use your own long hose and mask.
Did you check the filter in the loaner?

[BlackSpinner]

Life happens even on cpap. Those kind of viruses die quickly - unless the person with the health issues tried it on an hour or two before you got it... Besides it would be hard for them to swim up the airstream to get into the machine. The mask might have been contaminated but again the window for opportunity is small.

Turn up your humidifier and enjoy the warm humid air. Cpap is a blessing when you have pneumonia. I wore mine during the day while working from home a year ago when I got it after catching the flu. And it takes weeks to feel better because your lungs have to heal too.
After my first bout a few years ago (pre cpap) it took 2 months before I started to recover my energy, the last time it took about 4 weeks.