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HealthInfo Canterbury

CPAP trial

Whakamātaunga (CPAP)

You're being offered a trial of CPAP therapy. CPAP is a machine that treats obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA). CPAP stands for continuous positive airway pressure.

Normally when you go to sleep, your throat muscles hold your airway open. If you have OSA, your throat muscles relax too much when you're asleep. This causes pauses in your breathing. Often people aren't aware that this happens.

Untreated OSA can affect your long-term health. It can cause problems with blood pressure, diabetes, heart attack, stroke and heart failure.

How CPAP can improve your sleep

A CPAP machine blows air through your nose (or nose and mouth) into your throat area. The airflow supports your throat muscles and keeps your airway open. This prevents the pauses in your breathing and helps you sleep better. Sleeping better stops you feeling as tired through the day and improves your overall health.

CPAP is only a treatment for OSA, not a cure. There is currently no cure for OSA. But losing weight and making some lifestyle changes may help to improve your OSA and quality of sleep.

Doing a CPAP Trial

Christchurch Hospital's Sleep Health Services

This map shows Sleep Health Services' location.

sleep-unit-map

If you need to contact Sleep Health Services, please have the following information available:

To contact Sleep Health Services, phone (03) 364‑1089 or email sleep@cdhb.health.nz. Messages are checked regularly.

USL Medical contact details

Phone: 0800‑875‑2727

Email: cpap@uslmedical.co.nz

On the next page: Long-term CPAP therapy

Written by Sleep Health Services, Canterbury DHB. Adapted by HealthInfo clinical advisers. Last reviewed October 2022.

Sources

Page reference: 267400

Review key: HIOSA-12505