Status
Not open for further replies.

lorijt

New member
Joined
Sep 19, 2010
Messages
2
Reason
Loved one DX
Diagnosis
07/2010
Country
US
State
NJ
City
whippany
Hi - I'm new,
My father (age 73) has been told by neurologist that he has a form of als. We’ve suspected this for a time. His most debilitating symptom (besides severe weight loss), has been shortness of breath. His pulmonologist told him that one diaphragm is paralyzed and the other is deteriorating.

He was recently put on a Bipap. For the first time in 6 months, he’s been able to sleep for hours at a time. For the last six months he has gone sometimes days without any significant sleep. We couldn’t figure out why. Needless to say, now that he is sleeping, his quality of life has much improved.

He is only using the Bipap at night, although he does have some serious breathing issues during the days. He has episodes during the day where it is VERY difficult for him to breathe. Since he started on the Bipap, he seemed to be breathing better even during the day. But, today was a bad day for him.

My question is this; Can he and should he use the Bipap for times, other than nighttime, when he is having a breathing episode? My mom seems to think that using the Bipap too much will cause his body to rely on it too much and make his diaphragm decline that much faster. But, I’ve read the opposite. Do many of you only use the BiPap at night? If you use it during the day is there a risk to that?

Thanks for your input – Laura.
 
If he feels short of breath in the day he should be using the Bipap. Using it actually gives the muscles time to rest and he'll feel much better. I don't need mine in the day but use it nightly for almost 5 years now.

AL.
 
My wife uses her's alnight and most of the day. I see no harm in letting him use it if it helps him to breath easier.
 
I use mine all night and many hours during the day,THat was recommened by my ALS clinic and my pulmonologist.It saves energy as well as eases the burden on our sick diaphragms.
 
My mother's respirologist has said she should use it whenever she wishes. She does not want to use it at night, but only during the day. I think anytime it helps with symptoms is an okay time to use it.
 
Thank your all, for your reply. I will pass the info on to my mom and dad.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top