Changing settings to eliminate Aerophagia

[Surfbear]

Hi there!
I'm new to this forum and I'm a new user of Cpap (Autopap to be specific).

I'm experiencing great benefit from my Dreamstation unit,
however I'm also experiencing aerophagia (bloating) from my Cpap
use.

My initial ramp settings for the unit were 4cmH2O to 20cmH20.
The high end seemed too strong as it was waking me.
I asked my physician to authorize a change of the high end settings down to 
16cmH2O. This seemed to be a good step in the right direction.
I'm sleeping well with my AHI readings averaging 3.5 for this month.

The only issue I have now is abdominal bloating. I would like to know if
lowering the pressure a little bit more might help resolve this issue.

I looked at the posted link to the document explaining how to change the settings myself,
however my ramp setting displays a small icon of a 'lock' and does not
respond to any attempts to change the settings when I click the dial to make
a change. Is it safe to assume I need my physicians permission to make a change?

I did call him and ask for the first change, which he agreed to without any problem.
Just wondering if I could still do this on my own or if my device is locked down.

Any suggestions and insights on eliminating aerophagia or changing my settings are appreciated.

Thank you,

Surfbear  

[Cuppa]

If your machine is listed HERE you will be able to bypass the lock & adjust the machine's pressure yourself. Of course it makes sense to do plenty of reading here on the forum first so you feel confident in trying your own adjustments. Aerophagia is indeed more of an issue at higher pressures for many.

I suffer a bit with aerophagia at lower pressures than you are using. At pressures less than 10 I am waking with bloated discomfort in the mornings, which at it's worst causes back pain. However It has been a bit better since I raised the head end of the bed. Using extra pillows is something I don't want to do as it would aggravate a neck condition I have, but for many it apparently helps to sleep a bit more upright. Others report that their body somehow adjusts & they just get used to it. I'm still waiting for that to happen, but most days the gas is 'released' when I get up & move around. I have been known to get up for a short but 'tuneful' wander around the house before returning to bed for another more comfortable snooze or cuddle with my wife.

[kwhenrykerr]

Lowering the pressure worked for me to reduce the bloat. After several months I raised it up with no discomfort. As far as a Locked machine, Check out the link at the top of the forum on your machine.

Search this forum for aerophagia you will find good info.

[Surfbear]

"If your machine is listed HERE you will be able to bypass the lock & adjust the machine's pressure yourself. Of course it makes sense to do plenty of reading here on the forum first so you feel confident in trying your own adjustments.  Aerophagia is indeed more of an issue at higher pressures for many.

I suffer a bit with aerophagia at lower pressures than you are using. At pressures less than 10 I am waking with bloated discomfort in the mornings, which at it's worst causes back pain. However It has been a bit better since I raised the head end of the bed. Using extra pillows is something I don't want to do as it would aggravate a neck condition I have, but for many it apparently helps to sleep a bit more upright. Others report that their body somehow adjusts & they just get used to it. I'm still waiting for that to happen, but most days the gas is 'released' when I get up & move around. I have been known to get up for a short but 'tuneful' wander around the house before returning to bed for another more comfortable snooze or cuddle with my wife. "
----------------------------------------------------

Thanks for your reply. The steps posted to access the editing settings for my unit did indeed function when I powered the unit off and plugged it back in again. I had previously followed the steps beyond the point of plugging the device in and powering it up (since it was already powered on). Your post motivated me to try again.
 

[Gideon]

you said "My initial ramp settings for the unit were 4cmH2O to 20cmH20."
I question if this was your Ramp or your therapy settings.
Assuming it is therapy it is/was set wide open and while not a bad choice for an initial setting it really needs to be tweaked into a much narrower band, narrower than the 4-16.  The Dreamstation you have is the best of the line, it is a very good machine but by design it responds slowly, and as such your settings need to be tuned.  Could you please download SleepyHead software and post your charts.  Pay attention to the organization of the charts, what is displayed is important.  See my sig for how.

[Surfbear]

you said "My initial ramp settings for the unit were 4cmH2O to 20cmH20."
I question if this was your Ramp or your therapy settings.
Assuming it is therapy it is/was set wide open and while not a bad choice for an initial setting it really needs to be tweaked into a much narrower band, narrower than the 4-16.  The Dreamstation you have is the best of the line, it is a very good machine but by design it responds slowly, and as such your settings need to be tuned.  Could you please download SleepyHead software and post your charts.  Pay attention to the organization of the charts, what is displayed is important.  See my sig for how.

I have downloaded the software and am currently working to get the SD card to show
the data from the cpap unit. It doesn't appear to have been storing any data from the 
last 30 days of use.

I will be happy to post the data/graphs when I'm able to get things up and running.

Thank you for your reply.

[trish6hundred]

Hi Surfbear,
WELCOME! to the forum.!
Good luck to you with CPAP therapy.

[Surfbear]

Hi Surfbear,
WELCOME! to the forum.!
Good luck to you with CPAP therapy.

Thanks trish6hundred!! 

[kwhenrykerr]

As I understand our APAP machine it only retains a minor info to the internal memory. The SD card stores all the data produced.