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Being "cured" of OSA
#1
Ohmy 
Being "cured" of OSA
I'm on a Facebook users group for CPAP and every so often, one of the members will come on the board to proclaim that they don't need their CPAP anymore, that somehow they've been "cured" of their OSA. Now I understand that for some people, losing weight can lessen the effects of OSA or they decide to get surgery and yes, that does allow them to go off CPAP.

However, some of these people just seem to think that CPAP is just a "temporary" therapy and in a few months they won't need it anymore. The latest proclamation came from someone who had just been on CPAP for two months and claimed that they didn't need it anymore. No mention of whether they got a doctor's opinion.

What percentage of people who go on CPAP are actually able to go off of it eventually due to weight loss or surgery? (and are successful at it)

I'm just curious.
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#2
RE: Being "cured" of OSA
Hi novatom,

A copy of what I previously posted on the other board regarding MMA surgery.:

"A meta-analysis by Holty and Guilleminault [5] pooled 53 reports describing 22 unique patient populations (627 patients), and found that the mean AHI decreased from 63.9/hr to 9.5/hr, with a pooled surgical success rate of 86%. Overall, 43.2% were cured (AHI < 5), with a 66.7% cure rate for those with a preoperative AHI < 30/hr. Long-term surgical success was maintained at 44 months. Predictors of surgical success included younger age, lower BMI, lower preoperative AHI, and greater degree of maxillary advancement.
Quality of life measures, excessive daytime sleepiness, and blood pressure were noted to be significantly improved as well.""

I know having an AHI below 5 is the ideal goal but keep in mind that the typical person who undergoes MMA has tried everything to no avail. So going from an AHI of 63.9 to 9.5 would be dammed good."

If you google "Maxillomandibular Advancement Surgery
A Permanent Solution for OSA", that should take you to the article.

I know the anecdotal reports regarding various surgeries on this board and the other apnea board haven't been great but as far as official statistics, I really think we just don't know long term what they are. For UPPP surgery, I have seen a success rate as low as 35% but people like Dr Steven Park have said that rate is low because all areas of obstruction aren't addressed. So who knows?

And what people have to keep in mind is if someone truly can't tolerate pap therapy or a dental device, then surgery is the only other option as usually, leaving apnea untreated is not an option.

Regarding weight loss, I have been unable to find any studies showing if it cures apnea or doesn't.

I sure wish being on a pap machine cured my sleep apnea.

49er
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#3
RE: Being "cured" of OSA
I suspect a lot of people see their machine record a low AHI and think that they have been "cured". Of course, as soon as they sleep without the machine, the cure goes away.

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#4
RE: Being "cured" of OSA
Perhaps the machine helped them determine a sleep position that rendered the "cure".

Dude
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#5
RE: Being "cured" of OSA
In any event OSA generally gets worse as we age. So even if we can get in great shape at 40 so that the untreated AHI is below 5, we shouldn't call that a cure as most of the underlying causes are still there, especially the biggest one,namely aging. Like cancer we should call it a "remission" I think.
Ed Seedhouse
VA7SDH

Part cow since February 2018.

Trust your mind less and your brain more.


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#6
RE: Being "cured" of OSA
(06-14-2016, 06:37 AM)novatom Wrote: I'm on a Facebook users group for CPAP and every so often, one of the members will come on the board to proclaim that they don't need their CPAP anymore, that somehow they've been "cured" of their OSA. Now I understand that for some people, losing weight can lessen the effects of OSA or they decide to get surgery and yes, that does allow them to go off CPAP.

However, some of these people just seem to think that CPAP is just a "temporary" therapy and in a few months they won't need it anymore. The latest proclamation came from someone who had just been on CPAP for two months and claimed that they didn't need it anymore. No mention of whether they got a doctor's opinion.

What percentage of people who go on CPAP are actually able to go off of it eventually due to weight loss or surgery? (and are successful at it)

I'm just curious.


Thinking-about........Read this fascinating study. It explains why many take a few days to a few week off therapy a feel cured. Unfortunately the "cure " is temporary Unsure

http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/43/5/...RJtw180213

Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy has been shown to reduce soft tissue oedema in the pharynx, we hypothesised that this treatment may improve the patency of the upper airways, thus leading to a reduction in OSA recurrence following CPAP withdrawal.

As OSA is considered a chronic and mostly persistent condition in subjects who do not lose a substantial amount of weight, CPAP is assumed to be a lifelong and everyday treatment.

However, there are no data on the evolution of OSA during CPAP therapy, and whether this treatment needs to be used every night in all patients. Therefore, the aim of the current study was a preliminary investigation into the effects of short-term CPAP withdrawal in patients with OSA and to identify those patients in whom OSA does not recur during short periods, equivalent to the average holiday.
2004-Bon Jovi
it'll take more than a doctor to prescribe a remedy

Observations and recommendations communicated here are the perceptions of the writer and should not be misconstrued as medical advice.
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#7
RE: Being "cured" of OSA
(06-14-2016, 06:37 AM)novatom Wrote: I'm on a Facebook users group for CPAP and every so often, one of the members will come on the board to proclaim that they don't need their CPAP anymore, that somehow they've been "cured" of their OSA.

Unless they have evidence to support their claim, I would find no basis for accepting it as valid. CPAP machines treat the condition, they don't cure it. As soon as you stop using the machine, the condition returns. Immediately.

If weight gain was the cause, then it's possible that losing weight can cure it. But time is against you because as you age you lose muscle tone making the condition worse.

Sleepster

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.
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#8
RE: Being "cured" of OSA
Without all these "cured" people, there would not be nearly new machines on Craigslist to buy for pennies on the dollar.

I purchased a PRS1 60 series bilevel (760) from a woman who declared she was cured, so the machine had just sat in the house. She was still overweight and I suspect still needed her machine. You can lead them to water, but can't make them drink. A significant percentage of people fail PAP therapy, and they will invent excuses not to use it, including the miraculous cure.
Sleeprider
Apnea Board Moderator
www.ApneaBoard.com

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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.
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#9
RE: Being "cured" of OSA
Most are probably misinformed but there are some people that only have positional apnea
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#10
RE: Being "cured" of OSA
I just had a two year sleep study.....nope, still need it
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