Difference between revisions of "Continuous Positive Airway Pressure"
m (Continuos Positive Airway Pressure moved to Continuous Positive Airway Pressure: Misspelled Word in Title. Continuos = Continuous.) |
Forumadmin (talk | contribs) (→Continuous Positive Airway Pressure) |
||
| Line 7: | Line 7: | ||
CPAP works by creating a "pneumatic splint" for the upper airway. A flow generator sends pressurized air through air tubing and a mask (usually a nasal mask) and through the nose to the upper airway. The pressurized air prevents the soft tissues of the upper airway from narrowing and collapsing. | CPAP works by creating a "pneumatic splint" for the upper airway. A flow generator sends pressurized air through air tubing and a mask (usually a nasal mask) and through the nose to the upper airway. The pressurized air prevents the soft tissues of the upper airway from narrowing and collapsing. | ||
| + | |||
| + | [[Category:Definitions]] | ||
Revision as of 11:35, 16 July 2008
Continuous Positive Airway Pressure
The most frequently used therapy for Obstructive Sleep Apnea; abbreviated "CPAP." Invented in 1981 by Dr. Colin Sullivan of the University of Sydney in Australia.
A CPAP system delivers pressurized air, (Commonly 4 to 20cm H2O), through a nasal mask, to prevent collapse of the upper airway during sleep. If the patient can adjust to the sensations of CPAP, fatigue, blood sugar, blood pressure and a host of other conditions can be dramatically improved.
During the early years of experimentation, CPAP machines were made from common household vacuum cleaners blowing air into the patient’s airway at different pressures.
CPAP works by creating a "pneumatic splint" for the upper airway. A flow generator sends pressurized air through air tubing and a mask (usually a nasal mask) and through the nose to the upper airway. The pressurized air prevents the soft tissues of the upper airway from narrowing and collapsing.