[Symptoms] Aerophagia

[garyh1]

I have been using a AirCurve 10S BIPAP with nasal pillow mask (originally Dreamwear Gel Pillow and for the last 2 months AirFit P30i) since 2/2020.  Original Sleep study originally showed AHI of 107/hr, including many CAs (I was a mess!).  At 14/10, I am down to under 1/hr, which is great.  Problem is that since then, I have been dealing with a distended abdomen, which a couple of times had gotten to the point of being timpanitic and painful.  I have worked with my primary care doc on this, and have seen a gastroenterologist, had ultrasounds done, all with no conclusive diagnosis (diverticulitis was most likely).  I just read for the first time about aerophagia, and am thinking this is the issue that none of my doctors even mentioned.  I have not had the extreme condition re-occur since switching to the ResMed mask which seems to give me a better fit, but my stomach is still somewhat distended although not rock hard.  I just looked at the summary info on my AirCurve and it shows leakage over the past year was around 4mL (mostly with Dreamware) vs 2mL over the last week (just AirFit), so this may be improving the situation.

My first question is, can looking at detailed information from the software (ResMed or Oscar) help determine if either pressure settings need to be adjusted, or mask fit is the issue, or am I just swallowing air (I am not aware of any gasping or opening my mouth at all, and no longer am snoring)?  If so, which fields are most relevant? I should add that i am claustrophobic and could not tolerate a full face mask.

Second issue: I read that the Airsense 10 VAUTO may help with aerophagia (vs the BIPAP 10S), since it could lower the pressure when I didn't need it at full pressure to breathe.  Can the charts show whether the VAUTO will help me? And if so, does anyone know how Medicare would look at paying for switching out my 10S (that I now own after more than 18 months of rental) for the VAUTO?

[RNeil]

Using CPAP, you do not need to open your mouth or gasp to swallow air. Symptoms include excessive burping, passing gas and abdominal pain. Does your gastroenterologist know about your CPAP?

You should post screen shots from OSCAR. I don't think the Resmed software will help. The OSCAR data can show leakage and if settings need to be adjusted.

[garyh1]

Thanks for the reply.  I am aware that I should not need to breathe through my mouth, and I am not aware that I do.  But I do have chronic sinus congestion, which is a large reason why I needed the BiPAP, which helps keep my airways open.

I will try to post info here from Oscar, but I am not sure what fields are relevant for this purpose.  Thanks for confirming that leakage is relevant; I assumed it was, but wasn't sure.

I'm not sure my gastro was aware of my BiPAP use, but my primary sure was.  I will inform/educate them both!

[OpalRose]

garyh1,
Follow the link in my signature line below for guidance in "organizing" your daily chart. Then use the F12 key to take a screenshot. That will automatically put the graph in order as to what we need to see.