The first research into Philips’ sleep apnea devices is complete. The results are encouraging. Here is the update on the sleep apnea machines.
Research from 2021 revealed that some of the sleep apnea machines were emitting crumbled foam in some cases. This was subsequently inhaled by the user of the machine, posing a health risk.
Philips launched a recall operation costing the company hundreds of millions of euros. However, the first tests of the sleep apnea devices now show promising results.
Foam pieces
The vast majority (nearly 68 percent ) of the devices causing complaints were first-generation DreamStations. More than 60,000 of those devices were tested. The outcome was that the emission of foam particles mainly occurred in devices that were cleaned with ozone. The latter method went against the advice of the FDA, the US Food and Drug Administration.
Gel
In devices that were not cleaned with ozone the foam decomposed in only 0.5 percent of the cases. With ozone cleaning, that number shot up to 7 percent. In most cases, where the foam used in the devices decomposed, it did not crumble. Rather, it became a gel-like substance. In that case, the foam was not emitted by the sleep apnea device.
The company expects all tests to be completed in a few months. Philips has so far produced 2.7 million replacement devices and repair kits.
Source : Studio040
Translated by: Shanthi Ramani
