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Noobe still needs your input
#11
RE: Noobe still needs your input
#1, I would reccomend using that particular machine with a digital manometer, so you can actually have a cross check on *delivered pressure* this will come in handy later too when the CPAP eventually gets wonky. (from age)
#2. Get a CMS50-F wearable logging pulse oximeter. (free software: SO2 Assistant)
This will actually show you how well the CPAP machine is working for you.
If your pressure is too low you'll be getting desaturations.
If your CPAP says everything is A-ok but your oximeter is showing de-sats, and you feel crappy in the morning, then you KNOW the CPAP either needs a higher pressure setting or is going zonkers. (it happens!)
Got leaks? The oximeter will show you how bad is really is by the desaturation numbers.
Your doc says everything is ok but you know it's not? Now you have statistics to show him, hard copy with!
These two things will help you maintain and troubleshoot things at the same time!
I have been using these devices since October '12 and my big problem now is the bridge of my nose being sore.
Just my 2 cents worth.

Good luck!
Smile


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#12
RE: Noobe still needs your input
Thank you all to the fantastic replies! Greatly appreciated.

I live in Canada (medical system covers costs - it sounds like it is free but it's paid through taxes). My pressure was determine by an overnight titration at a sleep clinic (1st night they determined that I had OSA, the second night a few weeks later I did the titration at the clinic). The sleep doctor relationship is / has been very limited. Basically they told me that I had OSA, showed me a graph and booked the titration study. Have not had contact with them since. They said they would do a follow-up in a few months. I have been talking with the suppliers of the equipment every few weeks. Their solution is to sell me different masks. Not a bad gig if you can get it - sell CPAP masks to unsuspecting CPAP noobes - he'll buy anything! Sad They recommended I try a nasal mask and if that didn't work go to a full face mask and perhaps I would experience a different response. Alternatively I could buy 2 of each mask types they have in the shop and see if anything happens. Tongue in cheek.

In terms of humidity - it can make a difference in AHI and treatment. There is some literature on the web on this - basicaly if the air is too dry for your sinuses, most people will naturally react by opening their mouth - hence increasing the incidence of mouth breathing. Increasing the humidity will create the appropriate environment for the sinuses and will reduce the instinct to mouth breath. I have tried it and it works, to a certain degree, some of the time. However I have also noticed that too much humidity makes me uncomfortable and more likely to wake up. So there has to be a happy medium with this variable. I don't believe this is a huge factor in controlling AHI however it is a fine tuning dial (at least for me - in my personal and limited experience).

I do seem to have significant variability in breathing through my mouth at night. Can't quite figure out how well it corelates to AHI score fluctations. Some nights I wake up and parts of my mouth are as dry as a desert. Other nights not a real problem. I suppose I could try a chin strap and see if that improves the mouth breathing and the AHI score.

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#13
RE: Noobe still needs your input
(01-06-2013, 09:04 PM)Sedona79 Wrote: Thank you all to the fantastic replies! Greatly appreciated.

I live in Canada (medical system covers costs - it sounds like it is free but it's paid through taxes). My pressure was determine by an overnight titration at a sleep clinic (1st night they determined that I had OSA, the second night a few weeks later I did the titration at the clinic). The sleep doctor relationship is / has been very limited. Basically they told me that I had OSA, showed me a graph and booked the titration study. Have not had contact with them since. They said they would do a follow-up in a few months. I have been talking with the suppliers of the equipment every few weeks. Their solution is to sell me different masks. Not a bad gig if you can get it - sell CPAP masks to unsuspecting CPAP noobes - he'll buy anything! Sad They recommended I try a nasal mask and if that didn't work go to a full face mask and perhaps I would experience a different response. Alternatively I could buy 2 of each mask types they have in the shop and see if anything happens. Tongue in cheek.

In terms of humidity - it can make a difference in AHI and treatment. There is some literature on the web on this - basicaly if the air is too dry for your sinuses, most people will naturally react by opening their mouth - hence increasing the incidence of mouth breathing. Increasing the humidity will create the appropriate environment for the sinuses and will reduce the instinct to mouth breath. I have tried it and it works, to a certain degree, some of the time. However I have also noticed that too much humidity makes me uncomfortable and more likely to wake up. So there has to be a happy medium with this variable. I don't believe this is a huge factor in controlling AHI however it is a fine tuning dial (at least for me - in my personal and limited experience).

I do seem to have significant variability in breathing through my mouth at night. Can't quite figure out how well it corelates to AHI score fluctations. Some nights I wake up and parts of my mouth are as dry as a desert. Other nights not a real problem. I suppose I could try a chin strap and see if that improves the mouth breathing and the AHI score.

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#14
RE: Noobe still needs your input
(01-06-2013, 09:10 PM)Danceman777 Wrote: I do seem to have significant variability in breathing through my mouth at night. Can't quite figure out how well it corelates to AHI score fluctations. .
Hi Danceman777 and welcome
chinstrap can help keeping mouth closed and prevent therapy air escaping thru the mouth
full face mask allows to breathe thru your nose and/or your mouth
when air escape thru the mouth or/and the mask instead of keeping the airways nice and open would impact on the treatment




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#15
RE: Noobe still needs your input

Dance, here's a tutorial on how to quote a post.
http://www.apneaboard.com/forums/Thread-...85#pid3285
PaulaO

Take a deep breath and count to zen.




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#16
RE: Noobe still needs your input
(01-06-2013, 02:39 PM)Sedona79 Wrote: - I have not yet increased pressure settings. I am at 9 cm currently (per initial set-up), I could try increasing to 10 to see what happens.
- Have not tried different masks or chin strap to control the slight mouth breathing I do.

Any other ideas or suggestions that can help me to reduce the AHI below 5 and keep it in the 0 to 5 range are greatly appreciated.

Keep in mind that AHI varies quite a bit on its own, so the changes in your AHI may not be due to the changes you are making to your settings. I doubt very much that the humidity setting could be directly affecting your AHI. You should adjust it for comfort. The more comfortable you are, the better you'll sleep.

As to your pressure setting, well it may be time to tweak it, but first you have to get your leaks under control. If you are mouth-leaking you have to get that under control or nothing else you do will be effective.

As far as changing the pressure goes, you have to know the composition of your AHI. If it's composed mostly of obstructive apneas and hypopneas, and if your leaks are under control, then you may want to raise the pressure a bit.

On the other hand, if the AHI is composed mostly of clear-airway (central) apneas, and if your leaks are under control, you may want to lower the pressure a bit, but it's likely that your AHI will come down on its own as you acclimate to CPAP therapy. You certainly would not want to raise the pressure as it will make your AHI go up. And if your leaks are not under control they'll get worse, too.

See if you can get some information from the on-screen display about your leaks and about the indices that make up the AHI. Getting your own software to view the data would be awesome if you could get that to work. You may be able to send your data to your doctor or equipment provider and get a report from them showing your leak rate and indices that compose your AHI.

If I were you I'd get that chinstrap first. That alone may have more of an effect than anything else you do.
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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#17
RE: Noobe still needs your input
Accurite makes a nice little digital temperature/humidity display you can put in your bedroom. ( < 10$)
With this you can record successful room temperature - humidity vs CPAP humidifier settings
for later use as an aid to setting up your CPAP ahead of time for a good night's sleep.
If you fiind your room is more humid that 50% most of the time, then a room dehumidifier will be desirable
to prevent growth of mold in your wall/CPAP machine etc, etc.

I have to use one year round since I live in the swamps.
Except for a few months in winter, which isn't often..

Smile
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#18
RE: Noobe still needs your input
Hi Sedona; I would heartily endorse the Quatro FX mask. Being a mouth breather, I needed a full face mask and struggled with the the ones with forward supports espesially since I typically read or watch tv as I fall asleep, and thus need glasses on for those. The Quatro FX eliminates that forhead clutter which was a night and day improvement for me. All masks take soime time getting used to, and I was giuded in that regard by a pervious post by Jeffy58 who wrote a very informative post about mask usage. Good luck and hope this helps. Greg.
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