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Just Diagnosed - Starting Treatment
#11
RE: Just Diagnosed - Starting Treatment
Mixing brands of masks and machines is not a problem. At this point you don't need to be concerned with that.
Sleeprider
Apnea Board Moderator
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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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#12
RE: Just Diagnosed - Starting Treatment
(09-07-2016, 09:31 PM)SleepySleeps Wrote: Apneaway, thanks. I forgot about the feature that the machines have predefined settings for masks from their same company.

That is purely a marketing strategy. I wouldn't let it affect my purchase choices. There is absolutely no therapeutic advantage to having the manufacturer of your mask match the manufacturer of your machine. None.
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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#13
RE: Just Diagnosed - Starting Treatment
I ended up getting my machine today. A ResMed AirSense 10 AutoSet, with a F10 mask.

I am cautiously hopeful that my first night tonight will go well, and I will feel good tomorrow.

Off to update my profile now.
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#14
RE: Just Diagnosed - Starting Treatment
1. I had 77 hyponeas at one point. Is there anything different from obstructive apnea, as far as treatment is concerned?

With an APAP, nope. BiPAPs can be tweaked to address the hypopnea component.

2. Is my intended machine and mask choices good, or should I be considering something else initially? My DME has 30 day trial periods. Thankfully my insurance will cover 100%.

Dreamstation has worked well for me for about a year. Have also had good luck with Respironics System 1 for several years in the past.

3. Would a new pillow or mattress assist? If so, does anyone have any specific recommendations?

I got one years back but ended up tossing it. At the time I was using a FFM with a forehead piece which didn't work well for me sleeping on my side. I should actually try one again now that I have been using FFMs without the forehead piece anymore. Might work better. Have gotten use to putting my hand between my face and my regular pillow to get the mask off the pillow if need be. Firmer pillows in general seem to work better as you don't sink as far into them.

4. During the study my oxygen desaturation only dropped to 85%. Is it worth investing in an oxygen monitor? I was eyeing a CMS 50F, based on previous forum posts here.

Not needed unless you're curious. Thats about where my SPO2 dropped to as well with a 48 AHI. xPAP with a good AHI will fix low SPO2.

5. I have also been unofficially diagnosed with low testosterone. Is there any concern with treating Low T and sleep apnea at the same time?

I'll leave this one to others as I no nothing about Low T and OSA.

Hope this helps.
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#15
RE: Just Diagnosed - Starting Treatment
So, I had my first night on CPAP. While I cannot say that I feel ready to run a marathon, I do have a minor headache this morning, but I definitely feel a little better than my "best" days so far. And WAY better than my "bad" days.

I definitely think that I am going to take to CPAP therapy like white on rice.

A couple of questions:
1. My eyes look bloodshot this morning, what might cause this, and how do I fix it? This was not a problem yesterday, but was after my sleep study as well.
2. The mask seemed to "clamp" on my nose, but I was able to adjust it upwards a micro amount and it relieved most of the pain. I don't know if this is enough reason to go up in mask size? Things felt fine while sitting up straight, this was when I laid down on my side.

My AHI was 52 in my sleep study, reduced down to 13 once they put the mask on me. Per sleepyhead, my AHI for the night was 1.8! Although, it appears as though I had an hour where I hit 5 AHI, which I understand to be "treated", but room for improvement.

Sleepyhead did a report a big mask leak, but when I looked at the graphs, this was right after turning the machine on. I am fairly sure I broke the mask seal to move it at that time, so I don't think that is anything to worry about.

If anyone notices anything that I should consider changing, please let me know.

Thanks!

[Image: PYNndpU.png?1]
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#16
RE: Just Diagnosed - Starting Treatment
Your first night looks very successful. The summary statistics is not as useful to us as the daily details with the left statistics panel properly setup. This link is to an article that describes how to organize your data for use on the forum. http://www.apneaboard.com/wiki/index.php...ganization

Also, if you run short of attachment space on the forum, hosting images on a site like Imgur can be a very good option. This explains how to do it. http://www.apneaboard.com/wiki/index.php...pnea_Board

Mask comfort issues are perhaps the biggest challenge facing new users. You can relieve pressure on the bridge of the nose using mask liners, available from many suppliers. They cushion the mask, provide an absorbant surface and prevent skin irritation. Full face masks are known to irritate the bridge of the nose, and the F10 does so more than masks that have a forehead support pad, but in return the mask is less bulky. Nasal pillows of course are the most minimal of masks, and do not clamp on any part of your face. I hope you get the chance to try them in the future, assuming you can control mouth leaks.

Your first night featured pressure mostly in the low to mid-range of your settings. That's perfect. You seem to be using the EPR feature and it is working well for you. Your AHI results are exceptional for a first night. Don't get discouraged if they fluctuate or increase.
Sleeprider
Apnea Board Moderator
www.ApneaBoard.com

____________________________________________
Download OSCAR Software
Soft Cervical Collar
Optimizing Therapy
Organize your OSCAR Charts
Attaching Files
Mask Primer
How To Deal With Equipment Supplier


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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#17
RE: Just Diagnosed - Starting Treatment
Sleeprider, I will definitely look into the mask liners.

I had a lot of issues with the nasal mask at my sleep study, and my doctor wrote the prescription as a full face mask without asking me. So, my DME says that can only issue a full face mask.

My DME was recommending the F10, in that it would still allow me to use my glasses. While I can survive without them, it is slightly more comfortable. Although, I am still not able to wear my glasses with the mask, my glasses push into my nose too much while wearing the mask. Although, would liners possibly help?

Here is another screenshot from sleepyhead, hopefully this is more useful.

[Image: JAYougr.png]

Thanks for everyones help.
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#18
RE: Just Diagnosed - Starting Treatment
Well that is a very successful first night!

I had many an issue with the bridge of my nose early on with FFMs ... I have found it works better if I tighten the bottom of the mask as tight as I can tolerate, then only tighten the top of the mask only to the point where it doesn't leak and not much more.

Hope that helps ...
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#19
RE: Just Diagnosed - Starting Treatment
(09-09-2016, 12:01 PM)Maskup Sleepwell Wrote: Well that is a very successful first night!

I had many an issue with the bridge of my nose early on with FFMs ... I have found it works better if I tighten the bottom of the mask as tight as I can tolerate, then only tighten the top of the mask only to the point where it doesn't leak and not much more.

Hope that helps ...

I will definitely try this. I did to some extent, but, I may not have done it enough. Thanks!
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#20
RE: Just Diagnosed - Starting Treatment
With a FFM, the bottom straps are mostly for adjusting tightness to stop leakage and the top mostly for adjusting position. But after a certain pressure the top straps play more of a role in controlling leaks, at least on my face with a Simplus FFM. I have an F10 (I have a mask collection problem Grin) but I have not used it yet so I have no mask specific advice. If your supplier will let you trial different masks, I will suggesting trying the F&P Simplus and the Respironics Amara View as potential alternatives. Not every mask works well with every face, sometime you need to push to get the one that is right for you.

As for the bloodshot eyes. Was there air leaking out of the top of the mask and blowing into your eyes? I've woken with one or both eyes bloodshot and this might be the cause. It could also just be the mask being too tight near the eyes (that is just a guess), or the mask shifting out of place when you are deeply asleep and pressing on your eyelids.
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