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Air leak?
#1
Air leak?
I was diagnosed with sleep apnea a few weeks ago. My summary information was:
Stage awake 8.6%, stage N1 4.1% stage N2 70 %, stage N3 3.3% REM 16.3%. Leg movement 0. Arousal index 9.2 .Mean heart rate 65.7 , brady-tachy rhythm noted. Mild to gross snoring noted o2 max 99% min 88% . Apnea/ hypopnea index 5.1 and REM increased to 29.3
REM latency 40.5 minutes with 17 awakenings. Sleep efficiency 60.9%

I received my first machine Monday this week.
I have been sleeping worse and really do not feel any better. I did notice that there is air blowing out around the spot that the hose attaches to the mask (nose mask). I did download my sleep numbers but have no idea how to read them. Can anyone tell me if I do have a leak problem or how to read the numbers? Thank you for your help
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#2
RE: Air leak?
(03-06-2014, 12:43 PM)bs170 Wrote: I was diagnosed with sleep apnea a few weeks ago. My summary information was:
Stage awake 8.6%, stage N1 4.1% stage N2 70 %, stage N3 3.3% REM 16.3%. Leg movement 0. Arousal index 9.2 .Mean heart rate 65.7 , brady-tachy rhythm noted. Mild to gross snoring noted o2 max 99% min 88% . Apnea/ hypopnea index 5.1 and REM increased to 29.3
REM latency 40.5 minutes with 17 awakenings. Sleep efficiency 60.9%

I received my first machine Monday this week.
I have been sleeping worse and really do not feel any better. I did notice that there is air blowing out around the spot that the hose attaches to the mask (nose mask). I did download my sleep numbers but have no idea how to read them. Can anyone tell me if I do have a leak problem or how to read the numbers? Thank you for your help

You have a Respironics machine (which kind do you have)?
You have a leak issue that is probably contributing to your sleep issues. that definitely needs to be addressed. Your leaks should be 24 or below. You should look at the detailed graphs for more help with what is happening while you sleep.

EDIT: Also, you may have been a long time with untreated SA and it will take a while for your body and your heart to recover from it. Keep using your machine and watch the data and ask all the questions you can think of. Everyone here will help you through this.
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#3
RE: Air leak?
From your stats, you may have a leak problem. I don't know what the numerical threshold is for tolerable leakage.
That hole that blows air is normal, it flushes exhaled air from the mask.

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#4
RE: Air leak?
(03-06-2014, 12:43 PM)bs170 Wrote: I was diagnosed with sleep apnea a few weeks ago. My summary information was:
Stage awake 8.6%, stage N1 4.1% stage N2 70 %, stage N3 3.3% REM 16.3%. Leg movement 0. Arousal index 9.2 .Mean heart rate 65.7 , brady-tachy rhythm noted. Mild to gross snoring noted o2 max 99% min 88% . Apnea/ hypopnea index 5.1 and REM increased to 29.3
REM latency 40.5 minutes with 17 awakenings. Sleep efficiency 60.9%

I received my first machine Monday this week.
I have been sleeping worse and really do not feel any better. I did notice that there is air blowing out around the spot that the hose attaches to the mask (nose mask). I did download my sleep numbers but have no idea how to read them. Can anyone tell me if I do have a leak problem or how to read the numbers? Thank you for your help
this may make it easier to read

CPAP Statistics as of Wednesday, March 05, 2014
3 days of CPAP Data, between 3/3/2014 and 3/5/2014
Details Most Recent Last 7 Days Last 30 Days Last 6 months Last Year
AHI 5.04 5.01 5.01 5.01 5.01
RERA Index 0.90 0.99 0.99 0.99 0.99
Hours per Night 05:33 06:43 06:43 06:43 06:43
Pressure 8.00 8.00 8.00 8.00 8.00
Average Total Leaks 26.86 30.64 30.64 30.64 30.64
95% Total Leaks 38.00 42.00 42.00 42.00 42.00

Changes to Prescription Settings
First Last Days AHI FL Machine Mode Pr. Rel. Pressure
3/3/2014 3/5/2014 3 5.01 0.00 PRS1 CPAP C-Flex+ x2 8.00
The above has a threshold which excludes day counts less than 5 from the best/worst highlighting
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#5
RE: Air leak?
You're not getting a good seal on your mask yet. It is probably due to mouth breathing. Just as in all things in life, when we open our mouth we get into trouble. With a nasal mask I have to use a chinstrap to encourage my mouth to stay shut. I don't have that problem during the day, because during the day my wife encourages me to keep my mouth shut.

Solve the mouth breathing thing and you should be well on your way.

Oh, and avoid the tendency to make the straps too tight. They're designed to be put on comfortably allowing the mask to inflate to make the seal. Also the chinstrap is not supposed to keep your mouth fixed in a shut position, but rather encourage it to do that. You can still open it enough to make strange noises, such as yelling at a cat.
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#6
RE: Air leak?
Hi bs170,
WELCOME! to the forum.!
Hang in there and someone will help you with your report, soon and best of luck to you with your CPAP therapy.
trish6hundred
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#7
RE: Air leak?
I am kind of new at this as well, but what kind of mask do you have? I have been through quite a few in my short time on this, but I found the nasal pillow that goes directly into the nose gives me the least amount of leaks, I also use a chin strap, just in case, although I am not a mouth breather. The Swift FX nasal pillow is very small and lightweight, I am a side sleeper, so far, so good. You have to make sure the pillow fits your nose, I ended up getting an x small.
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#8
RE: Air leak?
Actually your leaks aren't bad at all. The vent rate for common nasal masks is about 26 to 30 lpm at 8 cmH2O, so your average leak is in that range. Your 95% total leaks are a little higher than that, but it depends on how long they last and when they're occurring as to whether they're a problem or not.

It would help if you could post the leak graph. Then we could see when the leaks are occurring and how bad they really are.
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#9
RE: Air leak?
(03-06-2014, 03:07 PM)Bama Rambler Wrote: Actually your leaks aren't bad at all. The vent rate for common nasal masks is about 26 to 30 lpm at 8 cmH2O, so your average leak is in that range. Your 95% total leaks are a little higher than that, but it depends on how long they last and when they're occurring as to whether they're a problem or not.

It would help if you could post the leak graph. Then we could see when the leaks are occurring and how bad they really are.
Mask is a Resmed Mirage FX

I attached the graph
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#10
RE: Air leak?
The Mirage FX vents about 28 lpm at 8 cmH2O.

If we discount the beginning hour and the spike at ~02:40 where it looks like you pulled your mask off, your leaks don't look bad at all.
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