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05-08-2024, 10:41 AM (This post was last modified: 05-08-2024, 10:46 AM by mickapoo.)
10 AHI per hour with cpap - normal?
Hi everyone! I’m a CPAP noob with mild sleep apnea. Been using my ResMed Airsense 10 for two solid nights. The first night, according to myAir, I had 10.5 apneas per hour. I attributed this to maybe having my mouth open so the second night I taped my mouth shut. Same thing- roughly 10 apneas per hr. What gives? Is that normal? Or could it be that I need to try a different mask or pressure setting?. I had 13 apneas per hr in the sleep study (w/o cpap) so it doesn’t seem like the Cpap is helping at all.
It should be less. They usually try to get to 5 or less but normally we can get it lower than that. But to help we need data. We get the data from OSCAR. OSCAR is a totally free software ( open source) that can be downloaded from the top is this site. You do need a SD card (Less than 30 gb) in your machine while you sleep.
05-08-2024, 12:52 PM (This post was last modified: 05-08-2024, 12:55 PM by SarcasticDave94.
Edit Reason: Edit Typo
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RE: 10 AHI per hour with cpap - normal?
Correct, 32 GB capacity SD card
Any brand
Standard SD card
FAT32 format
Other are correct, 10 AHI indicates there's work to make the therapy better.
If you have your sleep study detailed report, post it redacted of personal info. And if you don't have it, you need to request it from the ordering physician. In the US, HIPAA law says you can request and get it. No isn't acceptable, and I'd report the doctor that refuses to the medical board.
INFORMATION ON APNEA BOARD FORUMS OR ON APNEABOARD.COM SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED MEDICAL ADVICE. ALWAYS SEEK THE ADVICE OF A PHYSICIAN BEFORE SEEKING TREATMENT FOR MEDICAL CONDITIONS, INCLUDING SLEEP APNEA. INFORMATION POSTED ON THE APNEA BOARD WEBSITE AND FORUMS ARE PERSONAL OPINION ONLY AND NOT NECESSARILY A STATEMENT OF FACT.
I would give it more than 2 nights before being definitive. CPAP isn't exactly plug and play. New users can be quite goofy in the first few nights. I hadn't used a unit for a while, got issued a biPAP, and spent the whole first night with the button green (i.e. on), but vague blowing. I spent the entire night breathing through my mask with no extra air! I had forgotten exactly how to get the blower going lol. The DME called and asked me why I hadn't used my unit. I am still working on leaks, and it's not like I haven't used a mask before.
So, yeah, don't rush to make changes until you've got a few more nights under your belt, or expect yourself to get it perfect quick as a wink. For me, taping my mouth on Night 2 wouldn't be a grand idea. I think I'd try some less dramatic solutions until I was used to the setup. In fact, your mouth might not pop open in a different position, no need for taping at all. And yes, post your Oscars, so folks can see what's up and help get your AHI down.
This is exactly why we ask for oscar charts. Take a look at the Oa and H events on the top chart. Look twards the end of the night. You can see Oa and H events clustured together which is a tale tell sign of positional apnea (yours are mainly Oa).
Getting rid of as many as you can will lower your AHI. Positional apnea can NOT be controlled by pressure changes. You have to find out what position you are getting into and cutting off your own airway. Have you changed your sleep position? Sleeping on your back? Using more (or new) pillows? These things can cause positional apnea by chin dropping to your sternum and cutting your airway. Think of it of a kinked hose – nothing can get through – you have to unkink the hose…
IF you can’t make a simple change like changing to a flatter pillow helps then you will need a collar. I have a link to collars in my signature at the bottom of the page. It shows people who are not wearing a collar and the SAME person wearing a collar. There is a huge difference between the two
Even some of the Centrals could be positional. The cpap machine is not a perfect way to know if you have central apnea. The only real way is a in hospital sleep study where they have you hooked up to all of their sensors and a belt around your chest to tell if you are trying to breath and you are asleep. All the cpap can do is measure air, if it does not have obstruction when it blows a quick burt of air, then it reports a central. You could even be awake and holding your breath pulling up a blanket. So some of your centals on the graph may be positional as well.
Thanks for the response. I have no idea what position I am in that could be cutting off my airway. My back I guess? I don't really have a thick pillow. I guess I could change to a flatter one and see what happens?
