I'm not going to be at risk. There's a difference between "someone in their armchair behind a computer screen" and looking at reports issued by the Government saying "CPAP is dangerous for people in the area" and raising a question about why it's allowed in areas that are regulated by the Government, like commercial airline cabins.
People don't use CPAP on trains and buses. Just when they're sleeping on airplanes.
And the answer is "yes".
I have been told on United flights that I can't eat the nut snack I've brought on board because there's some kid 20 seats behind me in the coach cabin with a nut allergy. If 1 person with a nut allergy is allowed to dictate what particles the rest of the plane can emit, then surely the "rest of the plane" should be able to dictate what one person who wants to use an in-flight CPAP will emit.
Plus there are other treatments for sleep apnea, such as weight loss. See these _medical school_ web sites.
> For those who can't tolerate the CPAP machine, there are other options for treating sleep apnea. Losing weight is one: a majority of sleep apnea patients are overweight or obese. That extra weight causes their airway to collapse and their breathing to be interrupted.
We have some government agencies (presumably the DOT and whoever enforces the ADA) saying one thing, and other agencies giving other advice about exposing other people to CPAP machines in close quarters.
