Hello Guest, Welcome to Apnea Board !
As a guest, you are limited to certain areas of the board and there are some features you can't use.
To post a message, you must create a free account using a valid email address.

or Create an Account


New Posts   Today's Posts

21.6 AHI. Hoping surgery will do the trick.
#1
21.6 AHI. Hoping surgery will do the trick.
I was wondering, has anyone else had surgery for OSA? I am hoping the upcoming surgery will help out my case. Basically, I feel lethargic all day every day - vitamins or no vitamins - caffeine or no caffeine - exercise or no exercise - for the last 9 years. And I yawn constantly at the gym. I just feel like it is affecting every aspect of my life. Doc says rating is a 21.6, which, is that severe? Anyone bad effects just from a rating in the "moderate" level like mine?

27M, 151

Thanks,
Mark
#2
RE: 21.6 AHI. Hoping surgery will do the trick.
(02-20-2013, 03:18 PM)eh33 Wrote: I was wondering, has anyone else had surgery for OSA? I am hoping the upcoming surgery will help out my case. Basically, I feel lethargic all day every day - vitamins or no vitamins - caffeine or no caffeine - exercise or no exercise - for the last 9 years. And I yawn constantly at the gym. I just feel like it is affecting every aspect of my life. Doc says rating is a 21.6, which, is that severe? Anyone bad effects just from a rating in the "moderate" level like mine?

27M, 151

Thanks,
Mark
welcome to our forum, Mark
I was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea (not sure of AHI but much higher than yours)
with CPAP AHI below 1 and since than the effect of CPAP been life saver

try CPAP first and don,t rush for the surgery ... the surgery is not reversible and success is not guaranteed or if you don,t ever need CPAP

its been discusses here, Trying to get UPPP surgery - Dr. denies me
http://www.apneaboard.com/forums/Thread-...light=uppp


#3
RE: 21.6 AHI. Hoping surgery will do the trick.
Hi eh33,
WELCOME! to the forum.!
I think I would try CPAP therapy first before having surgery.
Best of luck to you and hang in there for more responses to your post.
trish6hundred
#4
RE: 21.6 AHI. Hoping surgery will do the trick.
Mark, when you say the "doc says your rating is 21.6", I'm assuming that is your Apnea Hypopnea Index (AHI) that was determined during an overnight sleepy study, correct?

If so, an AHI of 21.6 is on the moderate end for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), but even at that level, it can have quite negative effects upon your daytime sleepiness and overall health.

If you're talking about UPPP surgery, I'm surprised that a doctor would suggest surgery without even putting you on CPAP first (if indeed that's what happened here). Thinking-about

I'd be vary wary of a doctor who would suggest surgery as the first option to treat OSA. CPAP is known as the gold standard for OSA treatment and has a much better (and less problematic) success rate than UPPP. (although there are exceptions, of course). Even with UPPP, you'll probably end up having to use CPAP anyway, as even when UPPP goes well, it only reduces your AHI somewhat, and does not completely "cure" sleep apnea in most cases.

Read that thread link Zonk posted. Good info there.


SuperSleeper
Apnea Board Administrator
www.ApneaBoard.com


INFORMATION ON APNEA BOARD FORUMS OR ON APNEABOARD.COM SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED AS MEDICAL ADVICE. ALWAYS SEEK THE ADVICE OF A PHYSICIAN BEFORE SEEKING TREATMENT FOR MEDICAL CONDITIONS, INCLUDING SLEEP APNEA. INFORMATION POSTED ON THE APNEA BOARD WEB SITE AND FORUMS ARE PERSONAL OPINION ONLY AND NOT NECESSARILY A STATEMENT OF FACT.


#5
RE: 21.6 AHI. Hoping surgery will do the trick.
DON'T DO THE SURGERY.

Do CPAP. There's a good chance you'll need it even with the surgery, and you'll still have the side effects of the surgery.

Did your doctor suggest the surgery, or did he suggest CPAP and you're looking for options?
Get the free OSCAR CPAP software here.
Useful links.
Click here for information on the main alternative to CPAP.
If it's midnight and a DME tells you it's dark outside, go and check it yourself.
#6
RE: 21.6 AHI. Hoping surgery will do the trick.
eh33, as a physician I cannot make any diagnosis without seeing your file, but I can say from the information you did give us on the forum, unless there is a good reason for your doctor to forego first trying CPAP therapy I would not recommend it. If there is a good reason, please let us know, as otherwise just about anyone reading this thread will tell you to try CPAP first.

As for your AHI levels, no, it is not severe, but it is higher than than is healthy for you and you are in definite need of therapy of some sort. My own opinion is to try conservative options before going to surgery, which is not guaranteed to be successful for you (unless, I said before, there are compelling reasons to skip straight to the operation).
#7
RE: 21.6 AHI. Hoping surgery will do the trick.
I was diagnosed with severe apnea during a sleep study years ago and was told that despite cranking up the CPAP as high as it would go, I still had terrible apnea.

They gave me a machine, but it never seemed to work for me. So I quit using it and asked the doctor for the surgery instead, which consisted of a uvulectomy and having my throat scraped.

The surgery was not fun. I was told that there was a chance that I'd never be able to swallow properly afterward, and for two weeks I was deathly concerned that this would be the case. I could barely swallow water without choking.

Fortunately, a week or so later this passed and I was able to sleep much better—although I could tell that it wasn't 100%. I didn't go in for another sleep study (which was probably stupid) and when the apnea persisted—although milder than before—I bought a PurSleep dental appliance to keep my jaw jutted forward.

This seemed to help me considerably. But after that, I began to gain weight and discovered that my sleep was once again getting terrible.

About two months ago I did another sleep study, was found to have milde to moderate apnea and they put me on a CPAP. With the CPAP, they were able to get me to the point of no apnea at all.

I'm not necessarily recommending surgery, but if your apnea is severe and you're willing to suffer through the recovery, then I can tell you from personal experience that it at least helps. I don't think my AHI would be hovering around 0.6 every night (using CPAP) if I hadn't had the surgery.

That said, it's a pretty drastic measure. If I were you, I'd try to be patient and make sure that nothing else works.
#8
RE: 21.6 AHI. Hoping surgery will do the trick.
Thank you SuperSleeper, and everyone else for the response. I am glad I can look to someone for advice on this.

The doc is actually a very reputable guy - Dr David Steward, UC Physician MD for Head & Neck Surgery. I simply can't use the CPAP due to my circumstances - Deployments and upcoming police academy, so, straight for the knife I am going.

You mentioned the possibility that OSA can have very negative effects on sleepiness & overall health. 14 months ago I woke up without total feeling in my right side, and to a lesser degree, in my left side. After several appointments, the doctor believes I may have experienced, and may be experiencing Sleep Paralysis, as a possible result of continuous & untreated Obstructive Sleep Apnea. They are toying with the idea that OSA, ultimately, has resulted in a neurological condition affecting my CNS, which may be causing the continuous loss of strength & feeling in my right arm and leg (& small loss in left side) for the last 14 months.

CT Scan, EKG & EMG were all negative. Going for Brain MRI tomorrow, which, they say, is supposed to help rule-out other causes I reckon.
#9
RE: 21.6 AHI. Hoping surgery will do the trick.
(02-20-2013, 03:18 PM)eh33 Wrote: I was wondering, has anyone else had surgery for OSA? I am hoping the upcoming surgery will help out my case. Basically, I feel lethargic all day every day -

Surgery. You mean where they cut off your vulva... no wait... uvula... I was close. Never sounded appealing. Like an appendix I figure it was put there for a reason even though nobody ever talks about it - so hush hush. Well I guess it's a different approach than having a mask suck at your face night after night for the rest of your life. I guess it's a toss up. Who knows? Good luck!
#10
RE: 21.6 AHI. Hoping surgery will do the trick.
(02-20-2013, 06:28 PM)archangle Wrote: DON'T DO THE SURGERY.

Do CPAP. There's a good chance you'll need it even with the surgery, and you'll still have the side effects of the surgery.

Did your doctor suggest the surgery, or did he suggest CPAP and you're looking for options?

All paranoia and uncertainty aside re: my last message, when I was diagnosed with sleep apnea (I avoid talking about this) the doctor recommended surgery so I found another doctor. HE suggested the CPAP. Good thing. I was running out of doctors.


Possibly Related Threads...
Thread Author Replies Views Last Post
  [CPAP] Worsening OSA After Bariatric Surgery Ibrumley 4 59 6 hours ago
Last Post: SarcasticDave94
  Mask(s) to use after nasal surgery? Wonderlight 17 4,229 03-08-2024, 05:42 PM
Last Post: DoubtFire61
  [CPAP] Just bought a second hand bilevel, hoping for some help with titration? JohnnyLarueBathrobe 8 282 03-01-2024, 02:31 PM
Last Post: Sleeprider
  After major surgery Issues DANNOGA 5 255 02-26-2024, 03:29 PM
Last Post: PaulaO2
  Mouth Tape Trick for Wimps (like me) Deborah K. 29 2,588 02-05-2024, 02:58 PM
Last Post: punkrockcholo
  Talk me into or out of surgery BoxcarPete 30 1,955 01-27-2024, 11:05 AM
Last Post: Jay51
  New to BiPAP, hoping for titration assistance? (Probable UARS) Easing5319 13 1,016 01-06-2024, 03:57 PM
Last Post: Sleeprider


New Posts   Today's Posts


About Apnea Board

Apnea Board is an educational web site designed to empower Sleep Apnea patients.