RE: AHI 67/hour? High?
WOW! Thanks everyone for the well considered advice and counsel...truly appreciated! Thanks OpalRose, QAL, OMM, Trish6hundred and Player. You've given me some places to start and I'm trying to be optimistic. With zero REM sleep I can't help thinking that life can be much better if I can get at least a little bit of it.
After looking closer at my report, maybe its not that bad...AHI 67 was supine (on my back) but my overall average was 31.3.
And right OMM...I don't like to brag but yes, yes, my uvula is extra long! HA! (I didn't even know I had one!?!)
Incidentally, I wonder if they make a full face mask with flight helmet? I was thinking I could get my call sign put on it and go TOP GUN!!!
RE: AHI 67/hour? High?
Welcome to the board. Lots of great advice and information can be learned by reading the threads. I seem to read more then I post due to. I'm still waiting to start my therapy for my diagnosis of Central Sleep Apnea. I should be starting my therapy within a month.
RE: AHI 67/hour? High?
Welcome to the board! Between now and Friday I would read as much as you can about the different machines, that way you have a solid case if the doc or DME try to talk you into a brick.
RE: AHI 67/hour? High?
Thanks all! Well...looks like I'm rock'in ResMed's AirSense 10 CPAP. I had a follow-up with my GP before getting it. I have a complication, and subsequent ENT referral, in that upon exhale my left nostril allows air to pass unobstructed for a second or two and then....STOP! Like a cork was shoved in it. You can almost hear it "flap" closed?!? Maybe soft palate or uvula? Anyone have any experience with anything like that? Exhale is completely unobstructed but inhale, in just the left nostril, zero air passing through! THANKS for all the support, advice, wit and wisdom offered!
RE: AHI 67/hour? High?
Hi 2tired,
Welcome from one newbie to another. I know it is a bit late to comment, but I would like highlight a few things that stand out to me regarding your situation:
1. The AirSense 10 CPAP - is just that - a straight CPAP (continuous positive air pressure) and not an auto adjusting machine or APAP, and thus it is the cheapest in ResMed's new S10 product line. It is an excellent CPAP, but I would think that given your unique requirements that an APAP would give you much more flexibility. For instance it could be set to straight CPAP mode or in APAP mode the pressures could be very tightly defined if the doctors have some fear that a wide ranging auto mode would cause trouble. My suspicion is that they went cheap on the machine for reasons other than "requirements." But then I tend to be a cynic about these things anyway.
2. Your personal info bar indicates that you will be using an AirFit N10 nasal mask. Given the comment you made above about there being a possible physical obstruction in your left nostril, I would think that they would not want to start you off on a pure nasal mask, given that 1/2 of your breathing capacity is being blocked off which each breath. This sounds a bit restrictive and dangerous to me, although I do get plugged up a bit from allergies and seem to be able to live with my nasal mask. I was just thinking safety here and the ability to breath freely. Perhaps a full face mask or something like the ResMed Liberty hybrid mask would be a better choice at this point until you can sort things out with your physical blockage issues. It would certainly insure that you can breath fully and freely.
3. If your provider insists on going cheap on you and they cannot make the case to you as to why a straight CPAP is better for your unique circumstances than an APAP (and I would definitely challenge them to make that case), I would consider investing in a better machine on your own - after all this is a seriously dangerous medical condition we are talking about here. This would sound like heresy to a DME, but there are plenty of good new and slightly used machines for sale on the internet - especially on the huge site that specializes in personal adds and secondhand items.
One thing I have learned from this site is that in the end the therapy is only going to be as successful as we make it out to be. The doctors and technicians are not living with our unique circumstances. They do not suffer every night from an ill fitting mask or a maladjusted machine. They go on with their lives and very often we have to suffer for days or weeks before they respond. The great thing about the times we are living in is that we can take control of our destiny and therapy. I think this is what this forum is all about.
Here is the funny thing. After 2 months of researching and absorbing the wisdom from this forum, I now know more than the respiratory therapist they sent out to my home. I was asking her questions she could not answer and discussing nuances that I could tell she knew nothing about. Here is why: I am the one who was diagnosed with an average AHI of 87 & O2 desats going into the low 60s. For her those are just unfortunate "bad numbers." For me its life and death! I want to live long and to conserve as much brain function as possible! That is a huge motivator!
So don't be afraid to get aggressive and take control of your therapy. This game is for keeps and you want to keep as much of your health as possible.
Blessings and breath freely my friend,
Lucky
RE: AHI 67/hour? High?
2tired2sleep,
Do you best to get an Auto CPAP!
Either an Airsense 10 AutoSet or PR System One 60 Series APAP.
This should be your choice...talk to your Doctor!
OpalRose
RE: AHI 67/hour? High?
Yes but for straight air, the CPAP model is the dud. The Elite is what he needs for reporting.