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Change in altitude - AHI went up - Printable Version

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Change in altitude - AHI went up - Rastur - 09-15-2015

I live in Albuquerque, NM where the altitude is a mile high. I just returned from a week in Mesa, AZ where the altitude is about 1500 feet. Normally, my AHI is 2.5 or less but the week I spent in Mesa,AZ my AHI was above 5 and as high as 8. Does the change in altitude affect the CPAP therapy. I'm on a straight Cpap pressure of 12.


RE: Change in altitude - AHI went up - DariaVader - 09-15-2015

yes, but you usually hear about it going the other way. lol.

I guess anything out of the ordinary with your breathing, comfort, or just ability to sleep well can have a temporary effect until you adjust to the new circumstance - but I have definitely heard others mention *higher* altitude as an AHI contributor. and I can see how a lower altitude may cause a disturbance to the norm.


RE: Change in altitude - AHI went up - PaytonA - 09-15-2015

(09-15-2015, 09:03 PM)Rastur Wrote: I live in Albuquerque, NM where the altitude is a mile high. I just returned from a week in Mesa, AZ where the altitude is about 1500 feet. Normally, my AHI is 2.5 or less but the week I spent in Mesa,AZ my AHI was above 5 and as high as 8. Does the change in altitude affect the CPAP therapy. I'm on a straight Cpap pressure of 12.

I think that you must have had something else going on. I live in SoCal at an elevation of less than 1,000 feet. I just spent 6 days in Albuquerque, NM at an elevation of a little over a mile high. My AHI was about the same there as it is in SoCal.

Being in Mesa, AZ you changed a lot of things besides the altitude. I was in St Louis a while ago and had trouble sleeping. My AHI was all over the map. The sleeping problems probably caused it but i don't know what caused the sleeping problems.

Best Regards,

PaytonA


RE: Change in altitude - AHI went up - zonk - 09-16-2015

(09-15-2015, 09:03 PM)Rastur Wrote: I live in Albuquerque, NM where the altitude is a mile high. I just returned from a week in Mesa, AZ where the altitude is about 1500 feet. Normally, my AHI is 2.5 or less but the week I spent in Mesa,AZ my AHI was above 5 and as high as 8. Does the change in altitude affect the CPAP therapy. I'm on a straight Cpap pressure of 12.
What is the make-up of AHI, does it consist mainly of central events?

Will I need to have my therapy device adjusted if I travel at high altitudes?
While most of our devices will automatically compensate for higher altitude changes, some lightweight devices may require manual adjustment. If no adjustment is made, it may deliver less effective therapy. Please consult your local care provider for more information. http://www.resmed.com/us/en/consumer/support/treatment-and-maintenance/traveling-with-your-equipment.html

I don't think, AirSense 10 autoset is lightweight, maybe they're referring to the older machines


RE: Change in altitude - AHI went up - nicholb - 09-16-2015

(09-16-2015, 12:14 AM)zonk Wrote: What is the make-up of AHI, does it consist mainly of central events?

Will I need to have my therapy device adjusted if I travel at high altitudes?

When I went to Estes Park this year I had a sharp increase in centrals. I usually am around 3 AHI. The first night I was at about 10. It went up each night until it was over 70 the last night there (1 week). Basically it was altitude sickness. It went back to normal the first night back at home.




RE: Change in altitude - AHI went up - vsheline - 09-20-2015

(09-15-2015, 09:03 PM)Rastur Wrote: I live in Albuquerque, NM where the altitude is a mile high. I just returned from a week in Mesa, AZ where the altitude is about 1500 feet. Normally, my AHI is 2.5 or less but the week I spent in Mesa,AZ my AHI was above 5 and as high as 8. Does the change in altitude affect the CPAP therapy. I'm on a straight Cpap pressure of 12.

That is quite interesting.

For those who are susceptible to central events, a higher altitude will tend to increase the number of central apneas, so I suppose the extra AHI events at lower altitude were obstructive apneas and hypopneas.

Your machine automatically adjusts for changes in elevation, lowering the pressure slightly at the lower elevation. (I think studies have shown that at lower elevations slightly less blower pressure is needed to establish a target therapeutic pressure.)

My guess is that your sleep position may have been different. Obstructive sleep apnea is usually strongly positional, with the supine position usually being the worst.

Also, if the percentage of REM sleep increased while your were traveling, that could have contributed to a higher AHI. The obstructive components of AHI tend to get very much worse while we are in REM sleep stage, and a double-whammy is when we are in REM while in the supine position.