Colds-- Pre XPAP vs. Post XPAP

Given this wonderful source of information, I would really like to know if any of you on this board noticed any change in the number of respiratory viral infections (colds, flu) you were getting BEFORE you started XPAP, in comparison to the number you are getting now SINCE being on XPAP? It is a very important health issue to me and I would really appreciate your input/discussion. Thanks in advance! Ann

I have been using cpap for about five years and there has been no difference in the number of colds/flus I get per year. Occasionally, when the cold/flu is bad enough, I sleep better for a night or two without the machine so I can breathe through my mouth. Some use a full face mask in such situations. I don't have one. Other than that, decongestants help.

Tom

Ann N,
I still seem to get about the same amount of colds, but there is a slight difference duration sometimes.
If the cold/flu is very severe, can't wear mask and no change.
If the cold/flu is mild or at least starts mild and I catch it immediately, I continue using the cpap, making sure to clean mask and hose thouroughly every day. In this case, the cold clears up quickly with no additional problems (like the cough that takes a month to go away.)
So I haven't seen a change in number, but I have seen a small decrease in severity.
Debbie

Interesting question.
I've only been using the equipment since mid December, but I haven't had a cold yet this winter & I can't recall getting through a winter before without one. Sod's law says I'll now get a cold

The reason I started this stream is to see if others had experienced a drop in the number of colds they have experienced while under XPAP. Before I started using a BiPAP I was having about 3-4 colds a winter, yet after I started on the BiPAP about 16 months ago, I got my first cold the beginning of this March. Since I am also a severe asthmatic, this is very significant to me as colds/flu are what trigger my asthma. This last cold I got triggered a severe asthma attack, and I spent March 3 through March 13 hospitalized with it.

I am hoping that now that I am getting some real sleep, that perhaps my immune system has strengthened as a result. My pulmonologist and my regular doctor disagree with that analysis, saying that it is simply the matter of what germs I pick up. It does seem to me though that the public is always told to get plenty of sleep to avoid colds, etc. I think that I am going to choose to believe that my immune system is kicking in better now until shown otherwise.

But I really would like to know what others have experienced in this respect.

Ann

I'm also only a recent user of a bipap, starting mid-November.

I was so nervous ever since then, expecting to see a flu or headcold to occur and make it impossible to use the nose mask. I've been contemplating getting a full face mask, just to have around for that purpose, when I need to breath through my mouth. And like the other poster, I usually get something during the winter and often around the holidays (my mother thinks it's psychological, since I typically get a Christmas cold).

But I have yet to get a cold or flu or even just congestion (maybe a little congestion some, but not much). This surprises me too.

I get oxygen added to my mask, which has quickly brought my oxygen levels back to normal. I too have to wonder if there isn't some benefit. I still struggle with the treatment, but I know I'm less exhausted during the day, so it's working fairly well. My office usually gives out free flu shots, but we didn't get them this year due to the big shortage. Not that I get the flu much, I don't. But still, this is kind of a record for me in not getting some kind of cold. I wonder if having stronger lungs, or the humidification of the throat, or as you wonder, added strength to the immune system, if any of this might be happening. Great question. Definitely one to be thinking about.

Linda

I won't say I never get a cold , hardly ever since cpap. Guess those little buggers just don't make it thru the filter. If they do they just get blown away.

Cheers,

Chris