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Ongoing construction may impact traffic around University Hospital, American Family Children's Hospital and Waisman Center. Please allow for additional travel time.Read more
Ongoing construction may impact traffic around University Hospital, American Family Children's Hospital and Waisman Center. Please allow for additional travel time.Read more
The Aerobika® is an airway clearance device that combines back pressure and vibrations to help clear mucus from the lungs. Do not use the Aerobika® if you had recent sinus surgery.
Before starting the treatment, wash your hands with soap and warm water, or use anti-bacterial hand gel, to reduce the risk of infection.
Set the dial on the end of the device to a setting which gives you a comfortable breath when breathing out. Your breath out should last 3-4 times longer than breathing in.
Sit with your elbows resting on a table or sit upright with good posture.
Take a deep breath in. Place the mouthpiece between your teeth and make a tight seal around it with your lips.
Hold your breath for 2-3 seconds. Blow out slowly and forcefully into the device. Keep your cheeks hard and flat while you are breathing out. You will feel “fluttering” in your neck and lungs. If you put your hand on your chest while breathing out, you should feel the vibrations. If you do not feel vibrations, blow out with more force or move the dial to the left + sign.
Keep taking slow deep breaths while breathing out through your device for about 5 minutes or 20 breaths.
Remove the mouthpiece and cough or “huff cough.” To huff cough, take a deep breath. Hold it for 1-3 seconds. Then, force air out of your lungs with your mouth open like you would do if you were trying to fog a mirror.
Keep breathing with the device with breaks to huff cough about every 5 minutes for a total treatment time of 20 – 30 minutes.
It is very important to pace yourselfas you breathe out into your device. Pause for a few seconds between breaths. If you feel dizzy or get a headache while doing the Aerobika®, stop, breathe normally and finish your treatment at a slower pace.
After doing an Aerobika® treatment, it is very important to remove the mouthpiece and open the device to air dry between uses. Air drying will help prevent germs from growing inside the device.
Your device can be used at the same time you are doing your nebulizer treatment. You must take breaths in through the Aerobika® mouthpiece instead of the nebulizer mouthpiece.
Clean and disinfect your device each day, using one of these methods.
Take apart your device.
Put the pieces of the device in a basket on the top shelf of the dishwasher or in steamer.
Using a rinse aid in your dishwasher will cut mineral build up from your water.
Take apart your device. Wash the pieces in warm soapy water.
Rinse with hot tap water.
Place the pieces of your device in a bowl and add enough rubbing alcohol (isopropyl alcohol) to completely cover the pieces.
Soak the pieces for 5 minutes.
Rinse the pieces with sterile water. Do not use water from the faucet, bottled, or distilled water. You can make water sterile by boiling it for 5 minutes. Use this water once, and then throw it out.
Place the pieces on a paper towel to dry.