Breathing assistance apparatus

A nasal cannula assembly configured to deliver airflow to a patient, the nasal cannula assembly comprising:

• a face mount comprising a pair of nasal prongs and an oval recess;
• a pair of lateral extensions, each lateral extension configured to extend laterally from a respective one of a first and second end of the face mount, the pair of lateral extensions configured to extend along the cheek on opposite sides of the face of the patient;
• a gases flow manifold that is tubular in shape, the gases flow manifold comprising:
• a first end comprising an oval outlet configured to removably fit into the oval recess,
• a second end configured to attach to a conduit such that the conduit extends from one side of the nasal cannula assembly, wherein the conduit is a separate structure from the gases flow manifold, and
• wherein the gases flow manifold comprises a plurality of flanges, each flange defining a shoulder surface, wherein the shoulder surface extends only partially around an exterior of the gases flow manifold;
• and
• a headgear assembly comprising one or more straps of flexible material and wherein the one or more straps are configured to attach to the pair of lateral extensions so as to retain the nasal cannula assembly against the face of the patient.

A nasal cannula assembly configured to deliver airflow to a patient, the nasal cannula assembly comprising:

• a flexible face mount with a surface contoured to the upper lip of the patient, the flexible face mount comprising:
• a pair of rearwardly-curved nasal prongs comprising silicone and integrally molded with the flexible face mount, and
• an oval recess;
• a pair of lateral extensions, each lateral extension configured to extend laterally from a respective one of a first and second end of the face mount, the pair of lateral extensions configured to extend along the cheek on opposite sides of the face of the patient;
• a conduit;
• a gases flow manifold comprising a rigid material that is tubular in shape, wherein the rigid material of the gases flow manifold is more rigid than the material of the face mount, the gases flow manifold comprising:
• a first end comprising an oval outlet configured to align with the oval recess and removably fit into the oval recess of the flexible face mount, wherein the rigid material of the gases fold manifold is configured to allow the oval outlet to securely engage with the oval recess by moving the gases flow manifold axially into the face mount,
• a second end configured to attach to the conduit such that the second end provides a single horizontal side entry into the gases fold manifold and the conduit extends from one side of the nasal cannula assembly, wherein the conduit forms a separate structure from the gases flow manifold, and
• wherein the gases flow manifold comprises a plurality of flanges, each flange defining a shoulder surface, wherein at least one of the shoulder surfaces comprise a c-shaped structure about an exterior of the gases flow manifold;
• and
• a headgear assembly comprising a flexible material and configured to retain the nasal cannula assembly against the face of the user, the headgear assembly comprising:
• an upper rear strap,
• a lower rear strap, and
• a pair of side straps, each of the pair of side straps configured to couple to the upper rear strap and the lower rear strap, wherein each of the pair of side straps are positioned on opposite sides of the face, the pair of side straps extending towards the nasal cannula assembly and attaching to the lateral extensions.