[CPAP] No one monitoring me

[Mttnkatt]

   
Sleep study was ordered bhy my primary care DR and was an in home study done by another company.
My DR received the results and ordered the CPAP.

Problem now is no one is monitoring me.
Been on the CPAP for 2 weeks.  I dont see too much improvement.
Called the DRs office, they passed me onto the Company that did the study, which in turn passed me to the DME.

So no DR is overseeing anything. This board is the only thing I have.
Do I go get a sleep DR?  This is ridiculous!

[SarcasticDave94]

Welcome to the Apnea Board Mttnkatt,

I'll act the part of welcoming party, opening the door for chart gurus to chime in shortly. You have a head start on some, as you've got the chart posting down. View the Beginner area and chart organization links in my signature to get further ahead. Even if the doc or DME/RT were very involved, you likely will benefit from getting suggestions from actual xPAP device owners that are here. Hang in there for others to comment. Best wishes that we'll see positive results.

[MikeBear]

Unfortunately, you aren't special. Same happened to me, and I'm sure many others. My doctor ordered the sleep study, Apria delivered the equipment, and that's the last I saw or heard from either of them.

That was 20 years ago... I've paid for everything out of pocket ever since.

The difference is that NOW, forums such as this exist, and there are data-capable cpap machines so you can get feedback. Take control yourself, and you should be fine.

[Ron AKA]

Sleep study was ordered bhy my primary care DR and was an in home study done by another company.
My DR received the results and ordered the CPAP.

Problem now is no one is monitoring me.
Been on the CPAP for 2 weeks.  I dont see too much improvement.
Called the DRs office, they passed me onto the Company that did the study, which in turn passed me to the DME.

So no DR is overseeing anything. This board is the only thing I have.
Do I go get a sleep DR?  This is ridiculous!

I don't see anything obviously wrong with your setup. It would be helpful if you could display a wider band for pressure so we can see what the pressures are going to. Just click and drag on the dividing line underneath it. You could reduce the snore and leak rate width to compensate. Also if you maximize SleepyHead to full screen before you do the screen capture F12 that may help too. About the only thing I could see adjusting is the minimum pressure up some. If I could read the graph better, I could make a suggestion. The other possible issue is the mask fit. Sometimes leaks initiate false flag in the events.

[Walla Walla]

You can get the clinic manual for your machine from the members private files section. It describes how to enter pressures and different settings.

I would set the Minimum pressure to 12cm and the maximum pressure to 16cm and then give it a few days to see what adjustments you need from there.

[SarcasticDave94]

Mttnkatt,

One possible chart suggestion, on the left side, keep it scrolled to the top so as we can view that area. Leave it as is otherwise. Thanks

[Gideon]

Welcome to the forum.

You have a top of the line Philips Respironics Auto CPAP.  This machine will get you started.  You have Clear Airway events at a bit under 50% of tour total Apneas.  This may indicate a need for a more advanced machine, we will have to see.

The Philips Respironics machine works better with a range that is pretty tight to your therapeutic range, thus allowing it to react better to obstructive events that occur.  So I would suggest starting at Min 12 and Max 16 and expect further adjustments.  

Because CA events are sometimes triggered by pressure changes we may, later, have you dial back your Flex settings.  

Please let us know how you are doing.  This includes how you feel.


Fred

[DeepBreathing]

G'day Mttnkatt. Welcome to Apnea Board.

The first thing to learn is that the sleep industry doesn't always have patients' best interests at heart. Many of our members have found themselves in your position, all set up with a shiny new machine with no meaningful instruction and no backup. Never fear - that's what we're here for and we will help you through this.

The first thing that sticks out on your chart - the pressure setting of 4 - 20 is "wide open". Sometimes doctors and techs use this setting initially to see how you respond, then tighten up the range later. Other times they either don't know or they are just lazy. As you get a bit more data we'll probably suggest tightening the range by increasing the minimum pressure and lowering the maximum. This is important as Philips machines are said to react slowly to events, so it's best to get them as close as possible to optimum pressures.

The second thing is the number of clear airway apneas. These are mainly caused by the brain not sending the "breathe now" signal to the lungs. Often this occurs when people start out on CPAP as the body adjusts to a new way of breathing. Often, however they are endogenous. Did central apneas show up on you original sleep study (before you had the machine)? This is important, as it will suggest a course to follow in terms of pressure settings and (perhaps) machine type.

In the meantime, I would suggest a small increase in the minimum pressure, and monitor it for a week. Don't change more than one parameter at a time, and having made an adjustment, give it a few days for your body to adjust.

[Mosquitobait]

People here can help you. I'm not a good chart reader, so can't help with that. What you do want to do is ask the company who did your sleep study for a copy of both the report and the raw results for your records.

Frankly, most of us aren't monitored even if we went to sleep doctors. Most of them just check compliance. Heck, I've never seen a doc since my initial appointment. So, great that you got a good machine because that and the board are what will help you.

[Mttnkatt]

Thank you everyone for your responses!  I really appreciate it.
I dont know anything about this stuff and IM learning as I go.

Bonjour  IM gonna work on that tonight.  I started with 4-20 and a 30 min ramp,  Ive updated it to starting pressure 8 and 15 min ramp.  Machine is set to 10.5 So Ill have to go to the clinical setting and see if I can and change it.

If no Dr is monitoring me how would they ever know if I did need a different machine due to Centrals?
Good thing I have my friends here.
I will say my sister had her study done in a sleep center and she is on a Bi PAP due to centrals, and being monitored, so we may be onto something here.

Ron AKA I will update my graph set up...Thank you!!

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OH and a copy of my report has been requested...Just have to pick it up.