RE: No Mask, No Difference?
My sleep apnea is classed as severe although I believe something is not right.
I have now gone back to a wide open apap as yet again Im back on my machine and tired. I think on my annual review Im going to be there all day, I have so many questions that I need answering and Im going to ask for another sleep study (why not its free).
I believe that they have it wrong and if during my first study I only slept for just over an hour did they just do a rough guess. Hopefully I will find out soon.
RE: No Mask, No Difference?
Keep us updated, DC... your case is somewhat baffling to me. A sleep study should help, I hope!
SuperSleeper
Apnea Board Administrator
www.ApneaBoard.com
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.
RE: No Mask, No Difference?
DC, new guy here... I feel the same as you, I do not feel that I slept long enough during the CPAP titration to adequately determine my needed pressure.
The initial study I slept for 338 minutes, which is considerable and should be enough data, BUT... only 18 of those minutes were spent in REM and ZERO in stage 3... with 60 in stage 1 (drowse) and 259.5 stage 2 (mod.depth). I was classed mild sleep apnea, but have been "napping" almost narcoleptically around 2pm almost every day and wake up after 2 or 3 hours wondering if I fell asleep, so it doesn't seem mild to me. I may have been having a decent day when they did the study or stayed off my back for most of it. my AHI then was 8 (majority supine hypopneas)... I know this is very low compared to many of you, but I had 45 total arousals and 16 awakenings, one right in the middle to move the terribly uncomfortable oxygen sensor thingy. Heart rate was between 56 and 94 during the night. Also, I've been diagnosed with pretty severe HYPO-tension which I am hoping CPAP will not make worse since I've heard it can lower BP. O2 sat averaged 90%.
During titration study slept 211 minutes... 11 of which in REM. They started me at 4 and upon reaching my 11 minute REM stage I had 1 apnea, they increased to 5, then 6 for 47 minutes of sleep time... no apneas in 46 minutes NREM, doc prescribed 7 I suppose as a guess. The major difference between the two studies is that during the titration I spent the VAST majority of my sleep time on my side which is when I have very few events. I was hoping they would give me the S9 autoset that features the detailed data options so I could actually see the number of hypopnea and apnea, but upon downloading Resmed and plugging in my SD card, I realized they gave me the 100 dollar cheaper S9 Escape APAP.
I'm hoping that I can convince them (I know two people who work at the medical supply place) to give me the better version, even if I have to pay a bit extra "under the table".
Is this a relevant post? Not really, but I'm a newbie and accept no responsibility for my actions until my brain starts working properly again. Anyhow, nice meeting you and thanks for being a test subject, this was an informative thread. I had apneas for at least 10 years before diagnosis, thought it was from broken nose 24 years ago, but pulmonologist insists it is caused by my overbite (which I don't think is all that bad).
RE: No Mask, No Difference?
Welcome to the forum Jackazz76 
I wouldnt know what my results were as here in the uk all data is top secret  I was told by a nurse that I had sleep apnea, heres a machine comeback next year. Its been all my own doing to find out my data. I did complain as was hauled in to see the top man who acused everyone on here of playing with peoples lives and all sleep apnea forums are dangerous. At this point I had to bite my tongue as I wanted to verbally rip his head off. This time Im going armed to the teeth with data, medical papers a list of everything I want to say to them, just maybe I will find some answers.
DC
RE: No Mask, No Difference?
<lol> I wonder if there is actually some truth in that stereotype of the red haired Scot!
AND a Diplomat? <grins>. Until recently A sleep deprived one at that.
This could well be one of the funnest forums around!
Lol.
Greg (Ex Brit.)
RE: No Mask, No Difference?
Thanks for the welcome, my pop has been a Londoner for about 10 years now... only place to go if you want to be taken seriously as a starving artist. He's told me a bit about the health care system cross the pond, hopefully when we implement our own we can learn from many other countries that have been making mistakes for decades (i.e. too many antibiotics, ignoring valid natural cures, suppressing genius researchers like Burzynski). It's nice to see the Docs are as arrogant there as they are here, I've butted heads a few times, was told I had something extra that I am SURE I do not... I had great respect for Neurologists until mine admitted he couldn't read my sleep study results, I asked for a copy and have no problem understanding them (high school dropout with two year associates degree). We do have some legislation that entitles us to our own records (HIPAA law), but they laughed me out of the hospital when I told them I wanted everything including the video (who knows what they were doing if I was aroused 45 times in my sleep).
Now I'm just waiting for my sore nose to heal from my first full nights sleep with a CHEAP mask, I did use jeffy1958's guide to fitting, but this "Drive" mask really does suck. I'm trying the Phillips mask that they gave me after the titration study tonight. I see your Scottish and am sure there is an apnea/sheep joke in there somewhere but will leave that alone for now... have already been kicked off the coin collecting forums for my crass humor and improper screen name.
So far as messing with levels... as long as your suggested level falls somewhere in range for an APAP it's fine. That is what the clinician told me at the medical supply place when I admitted I'd been "tweaking" a bit, he said that the docs aren't all that familiar with how autosets work yet, but since he deals in them he's had to take seminars and training on them. He actually said a lot of people just run them fully open until they find the best range to use constantly, by checking their own data... but he's not legally allowed to suggest I do that. I'm trying to convince him to let me trade in the Escape S9 for the better one that gives more data and has the "mask fitting" program, I'd have to pay the difference that insurance doesn't cover.
RE: No Mask, No Difference?
(08-08-2012, 11:03 PM)jackazz76 Wrote: Thanks for the welcome, my pop has been a Londoner for about 10 years now... only place to go if you want to be taken seriously as a starving artist. He's told me a bit about the health care system cross the pond, hopefully when we implement our own we can learn from many other countries that have been making mistakes for decades (i.e. too many antibiotics, ignoring valid natural cures, suppressing genius researchers like Burzynski). It's nice to see the Docs are as arrogant there as they are here, I've butted heads a few times, was told I had something extra that I am SURE I do not... I had great respect for Neurologists until mine admitted he couldn't read my sleep study results, I asked for a copy and have no problem understanding them (high school dropout with two year associates degree). We do have some legislation that entitles us to our own records (HIPAA law), but they laughed me out of the hospital when I told them I wanted everything including the video (who knows what they were doing if I was aroused 45 times in my sleep).
Now I'm just waiting for my sore nose to heal from my first full nights sleep with a CHEAP mask, I did use jeffy1958's guide to fitting, but this "Drive" mask really does suck. I'm trying the Phillips mask that they gave me after the titration study tonight. I see your Scottish and am sure there is an apnea/sheep joke in there somewhere but will leave that alone for now... have already been kicked off the coin collecting forums for my crass humor and improper screen name.
So far as messing with levels... as long as your suggested level falls somewhere in range for an APAP it's fine. That is what the clinician told me at the medical supply place when I admitted I'd been "tweaking" a bit, he said that the docs aren't all that familiar with how autosets work yet, but since he deals in them he's had to take seminars and training on them. He actually said a lot of people just run them fully open until they find the best range to use constantly, by checking their own data... but he's not legally allowed to suggest I do that. I'm trying to convince him to let me trade in the Escape S9 for the better one that gives more data and has the "mask fitting" program, I'd have to pay the difference that insurance doesn't cover.
Hope you like the video (See above) 
You'l fit in great and hopefully you will make a master member and join the mad house. Big fan of the boys (Jackass) Im so glad everything is free here otherwise I would have not got treated. I hope you get your new equipment soon and again hope your stay is long here we could do with a few more comics 
08-08-2012, 11:30 PM
(This post was last modified: 08-08-2012, 11:31 PM by jackazz76.)
RE: No Mask, No Difference?
HAHA, I was actually searching for my rebuttal to your video, it reminded me of John Valby's song "yo ho" but can't find a video and would probably definitely get me kicked off anyhow. Believe it or not, I had this name before Jackass came around... I personally can't stand most of their stuff, it makes us look REAL bad. So my rebuttal will have to be a classic... hopefully just dropping the link in will embed it.
<embed>youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=p9PiqCeLEmM</embed>
Well, I guess I haven't yet earned the right to put clickable links yet, I was gonna throw out 4 more posts and just delete em quick so I'd reach the 8 post limit, but it won't even let me edit my other posts yet. Well, there is a space between www. and youtube if ya want to watch.
I see that didn't work.
RE: No Mask, No Difference?
(08-08-2012, 11:30 PM)jackazz76 Wrote: HAHA, I was actually searching for my rebuttal to your video, it reminded me of John Valby's song "yo ho" but can't find a video and would probably definitely get me kicked off anyhow. Believe it or not, I had this name before Jackass came around... I personally can't stand most of their stuff, it makes us look REAL bad. So my rebuttal will have to be a classic... hopefully just dropping the link in will embed it.
<embed>youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=p9PiqCeLEmM</embed>
Well, I guess I haven't yet earned the right to put clickable links yet, I was gonna throw out 4 more posts and just delete em quick so I'd reach the 8 post limit, but it won't even let me edit my other posts yet. Well, there is a space between www. and youtube if ya want to watch.
I see that didn't work.
Just above where you write there is a tv icon that lets you drop youtube video's in your post, try editing your post.
I dont think they make you look bad in anyway check out my thread of true scotsman in off-topics....
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