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

Daytime breathing difficulties
#1
Daytime breathing difficulties
Hi all and thanks for allowing me to join. My hubby is new to the CPAP used it 3 nights, the following day his lungs hurt and couldn't get a deep breath, skipped one night, breathing better but not normal, then after 3 more nights on the machine his breathing can get so rapid and shallow he gets light headed. Almost went to ER. After a while, it passes and he will feel better but still not right. Never had a daytime breathing problem before. Thankfully, he has dr. appt tomorrow. We think the machine is running wild at times. If mask leaks or gets jarred sometimes when he readjusts and rehooks the hose the air keeps blasting and other times once the hose is rehooked it settles down right away to minimum and all is well. Pressure has knocked mask off his face. sometimes even turning machine off and on won't reset it. He says it feels like he fighting to exhale. The first mask is too small (ResMed mask) and he got a new mask Saturday (F&P) but is afraid to try it until we know if machine is okay. Sad too because he was looking forward to trying new mask. We don't know enough to know what it should work like or what questions to ask the dr. I don't know any numbers other than he stopped breathing on average 72 times a hour during his in-home study. He is physically and mentally exhausted and desperately wants the machine to work. when it does appear to work he is resting quietly. Has adjusted well to mask. Sorry for so much info. Has anyone heard of a machine running amok like this? Anyone have the hurting chest and shortness of breathing to the point of paleness and lightheadedness? He feel ill. What kind of things should we talk to dr. about? Any thoughts on what be going on with his lungs? Can it do permanent damage?
Thanks for your thoughts and support
Susan
Post Reply Post Reply
#2
RE: Daytime breathing difficulties
Welcome to the forum MastiffMom.

First and foremost he needs to address all of his concerns with his doctor. It would be very helpful if you can provide more detail. For instance:

What are the maximum and minimum pressures set in his Autoset?
Is the machine set to use the exhalation pressure relief? If so, what setting?
AHI and leak rate?

These numbers are available on the machine. Someone will give you the links to get the manuals that will help you to find these numbers on the Autoset. Someone will also probably give you the link to get the software that will allow you to download the data from the machine and look at it in graphical format. I just have not gotten this info set up and I am old enough that my memory is pretty crappy.

Best Regards,

PaytonA

Admin Note:
PaytonA passed away in September 2017
Click HERE to read his Memorial Thread

~ Rest in Peace ~
Post Reply Post Reply
#3
RE: Daytime breathing difficulties
Thanks so much for responding. The min. is 5 but we don't know what the max is. I don't know about the exhalation pressure relief ... never heard of it ... but we will definitely check. I got the manual and will get the software when I get home from work.
Post Reply Post Reply
#4
RE: Daytime breathing difficulties
Hi MastiffMom,
WELCOME! to the forum.!
When your husband goes to his next Dr. apointment, he should tell his Doc about all the problems he is having.
Hang in there for more suggestions and best of luck to you & your husband with his CPAP therapy.
trish6hundred
Post Reply Post Reply
#5
RE: Daytime breathing difficulties
Welcome to the forum!
Sorry your husband is not adjusting very well. Thankfully he has a an upcoming Doctor's appointment. Make sure you tell him everything your husband is going through.
Stay on board here and people with much more knowledge will be along to help with your technical issues.
Good luck to you both.
Sleep Tight...
Gabby
Post Reply Post Reply
#6
RE: Daytime breathing difficulties
The S9 is a great machine and will serve him very nicely once set up properly. What happens a lot is the machine is set to defaults, or near defaults which are a minimum of 4 or 5, and a max of 20. The idea is the S9 will figure out where he should be to control his apnea events. ...and that is pretty much true. But sometimes because of some of the things you mention, the machine will raise the pressure too far above what is required in an attempt to override some other problem. Such as leaks.

What we don't know is what is "right" for your husband. The home sleep study determined he has sleep apnea, but a separate "titration" was not done to determine what his pressures should be.

So we really need you to install the Sleepyhead software and get his statistics for the last few days. What you're looking for is where the pressure "sits" for the better part of the night. Let's say that comes in at 14.

Then you could establish a low pressure of say 10, and a high of say 15. That would give a nice range for the machine to work with and would allow you to see if that resolved his high ahi. After running in a range for a couple of days, then you may move it up or down a little at a time to find the "sweet spot."

EPR is probably not turned on at this time since it's default is "off." I think I would leave it off for now. It's best to fool with just one thing at a time to see how he reacts.

As far as the soreness goes? That should go away once the settings are correct for him.

By the way: Just to avoid having to ask "what now?" on another issue --- when you put the sdcard from the resmed into the computer, set it's "lock" on. Then unlock it when you put it back in the Resmed.
Post Reply Post Reply
#7
RE: Daytime breathing difficulties
Did you contact your DME (if that's where you got your machine)? Most will send a tech to your home, especially when you first get it, to provide support for any issues.
Also, I'm not sure the machine is running amok. If you not wearing the mask properly and are leaking air, or if it is totally disconnected from the mask, it will sound wild with the air rushing through the hose.
Lastly, even at high pressure you can exhale, though when first starting out on this therapy, it may give you a sensation that you can't.
I don't have a comment on the labored breathing during the day as I have never heard of that problem.
Welcome to the forum and I am sure more helpful posts will follow.
To err is human, but to really mess things up, you need a computer.
Post Reply Post Reply
#8
RE: Daytime breathing difficulties
I think we're missing the original question. If I read correctly, since starting CPAP, the husband is having trouble breathing during the day when off the machine. His breathing is rapid and shallow. MastiffMom, do I understand correctly?

Keeping in mind that I cannot give medical advice, rapid breathing tends to lower the CO2 level in the blood. It's called hyperventilating.
People can and sometimes do pass out from it. I have no idea why he's doing it; nor if it has anything to do with CPAP.
It could possibly be an anxiety reaction.
Admin Note:
JustMongo passed away in August 2017
Click HERE to read his Memorial Thread

~ Rest in Peace ~
Post Reply Post Reply
#9
RE: Daytime breathing difficulties
(06-16-2014, 10:47 PM)justMongo Wrote: I think we're missing the original question. If I read correctly, since starting CPAP, the husband is having trouble breathing during the day when off the machine. His breathing is rapid and shallow. MastiffMom, do I understand correctly?

Keeping in mind that I cannot give medical advice, rapid breathing tends to lower the CO2 level in the blood. It's called hyperventilating.
People can and sometimes do pass out from it. I have no idea why he's doing it; nor if it has anything to do with CPAP.
It could possibly be an anxiety reaction.

Thanks for bringing it back to the OPs question.

Yes, using the CPAP at night doesn't often bring on breathing difficulties during the day. Sometimes some nasal congestion, sometimes some chest tenderness. I suggest you contact his sleep doc or the supplier and let them know what is going on. If they wave it off, you can always go see your regular physician. Could be two totally different things happening.
PaulaO

Take a deep breath and count to zen.




Post Reply Post Reply
#10
RE: Daytime breathing difficulties
Thanks so much for the replies. Dr. wouldn't listen to talk about what machine was doing. He is a doctor and knows nothing about how the machines work (his words). He did say lungs were very elastic and that his lungs got overpressurized (blown up like a balloon) and they needed time to deflate. 3 nights off machine and he's doing better, not normal yet but better. Because I was able to print reports from ResScan (thanks to this board) I took reports. He asked what we wanted (how are we supposed to know!). He is going to set max pressure at 12 and I've asked that he up the EPR to 3 from the current 2 and we are going to try again after his lungs feel better with a different mask. Here's the readings: Median pressure 11.9, 95th percentile 17.3 and max 19.4; leak median 14.4, 95th percentile 67.2 and max 165.6. apnea index 5.6. hypopnea index 0.9. obstructive 3.2, AHI 6.5. unknown 1.9. I have no idea what all this means.

Can an ill-fitting mask cause the machine to over pressurize him? There were times when he was awake and trying to reseat the mask that he would physically press the mask tighter against his face and the pressure would blow the seal away from his skin. He also complained that sometimes the pressure was so high it would blow out the vent holes into his eyes (again he was awake). We don't understand how a leak would cause it to over pressurize, I would think if the air was free flowing then it would lower the pressure since there is no resistance. The RT that sets up the machines only does it as his 2nd job and he just picks a mask and fits the size and you're done. We are working with the DME and they are the ones that sent the 2nd mask ... they are much more helpful that the one that fitted him.
Post Reply Post Reply


Possibly Related Threads...
Thread Author Replies Views Last Post
  Worried about periodic breathing / CA patterns Jorgo 43 1,061 6 hours ago
Last Post: Jorgo
  Daytime sleepiness zzcop302 0 95 03-15-2024, 05:50 PM
Last Post: zzcop302
  Alternative Therapy to CPAP (Nasal Breathing) Wcwilson 1 148 03-07-2024, 04:02 PM
Last Post: G. Szabo
  Nasal massage and exercises to help nose breathing sleepingbetterinFl 1 170 03-06-2024, 11:11 PM
Last Post: OpalRose
  [Treatment] Using Bipap for UARS - can anyone help with erratic breathing and my settings? RagingBull 7 508 03-06-2024, 12:23 PM
Last Post: bertchintus
  Nasal Breathing / Septoplasty questions Ptee8899 7 381 02-13-2024, 11:10 PM
Last Post: HalfAsleep
  Anything can be done for baby with breathing problems Ptee8899 3 221 02-11-2024, 11:30 PM
Last Post: eok361


New Posts   Today's Posts


About Apnea Board

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