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Is there an end to CPAP therapy? - SamStamport - 10-28-2016
Is there an end to CPAP therapy? If so, how do I know that it's time to stop treatment?
Ultimately, it is the brain that controls the air way, is it not? So what the machine does is to force the air way open thus re-training the brain to keep it open without the machine. Essentially new brain path ways are presumably created, right?
RE: Is there an end to CPAP therapy? - justMongo - 10-28-2016
(10-28-2016, 02:00 PM)SamStamport Wrote: Ultimately, it is the brain that controls the air way, is it not? So what the machine does is to force the air way open thus re-training the brain to keep it open without the machine. Essentially new brain path ways are presumably created, right?
Sorry, but No. During sleep, the process of breathing is driven by the "old brain" The Medulla Oblongata. To my knowledge no new neural pathways are created there.
RE: Is there an end to CPAP therapy? - pat53 - 10-28-2016
Has anyone ever been able to stop using the cpap?
I started using it about 15 years ago, Dr said because I was so over weight, I'm now 150 lbs lighter and try to not use the cpap every so often but find that I still need it. the pressure is very strong so it's such a drastic difference, was wondering if it's possible to gradually lower the air pressure over time until able to sleep with out it?
RE: Is there an end to CPAP therapy? - KSMatthew - 10-28-2016
If it's OSA and not CSA, you might be able to lose enough weight to lower your AHI <5, it's been done. The only way to know is to do some sort of sleep study.
You could lower your pressures a bit at a time and see how your AHI numbers change. Give yourself maybe a couple weeks at each pressure change to get used to it. I think 4-5cm is as low as they generally go.
Why do you say you "still need it"? That implies you still meet the criteria for OSA.
RE: Is there an end to CPAP therapy? - dzwiss - 10-28-2016
CPAP therapy expires when you do.
RE: Is there an end to CPAP therapy? - richb - 10-28-2016
Hi SamStamport. We have just seen a posting by a member who lost a great deal of weight and took up serious aerobic exercise. His Dr told him he was cured of his OSA. Individual anatomy varies greatly so even with serious weight loss and exercise you might not have the same benefits. Besides, many people with normal weight have OSA and anatomy alone can be the culprit.
Rich
RE: Is there an end to CPAP therapy? - SamStamport - 10-28-2016
Thanks. I'll take that into consideration.
RE: Is there an end to CPAP therapy? - pat53 - 10-28-2016
(10-28-2016, 04:21 PM)KSMatthew Wrote: Why do you say you "still need it"? That implies you still meet the criteria for OSA.You're probably right, I woke up needing air.
Thanks! appreciate the info.
the machine I have is working but I'm unable to change any settings (the buttons quit working after a trip to Philippines) I just bought a second hand of same machine online so I can try lowering it a little and see how it goes.
RE: Is there an end to CPAP therapy? - Sleepster - 10-29-2016
(10-28-2016, 03:48 PM)pat53 Wrote: I started using it about 15 years ago, Dr said because I was so over weight, I'm now 150 lbs lighter and try to not use the cpap every so often but find that I still need it. the pressure is very strong so it's such a drastic difference, was wondering if it's possible to gradually lower the air pressure over time until able to sleep with out it?
If you have the most common type of sleep apnea, called obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), then losing weight can help. As we age we lose muscle tone and that doesn't help.
You can definitely start to lower your pressure, and as you do, monitor your AHI to make sure it doesn't go up.
Consider a newer machine. The S8 is pretty old and there have been significant improvements since that time. An auto-adjusting machine will allow you to spend more time at lower pressures, raising it only if and when you need it.
The lowest pressure possible is 4 cm. If you don't need a pressure higher than that to keep your AHI below 5, then only a sleep study will tell you for sure if you don't a machine at all.
RE: Is there an end to CPAP therapy? - Slim1950 - 10-29-2016
There are plenty of cases where OSA vanish along with weight loss or strengthening the right muscles. There are stories on line (you have to search for them) of how to increase the muscle tone in your throat (such as learning how to play the didgeriddoo (sp) or there are different exercises that you can find online..
OSA is not a neural issue per se.. it is an issue with excess tissue in your airway. For instance I have an enlarged uvula and a very narrow windpipe.. and I am overweight so that is a triple whammy .. (I just recently dropped from the obese category to the overweight category
I went through a phase of weight loss, where my OSA ceased for a couple of years. And then inexplicably it came back again. Don't know why, so I had to retrain myself to sleep on a Bpap machine.