Reducing Central or Clear Airway Events?

[bluemom51]

bluemom what the Resmed tech told you is BS about the Breeze. I have used mine with the humidity set at 6 and no rainouts. I don't use it every night as I am trying to transition over to the Airfit P10 only because my DME can't get the Breeze for me and I am too lazy to get a script sent to another DME. I am a side sleeper and the Breeze is perfect for me. I rigged the Airfit hose to go up over the top of my head and for the most part it works. I kinda got long winded here but, the Breeze is not your problem.

It is all puzzling, but that's what the Tech guy (I had to really work at getting through to them because the frontline people don't want us to talk directly to them) told me. I told him I was having terrible problems and when I lifted my mask the water was spraying like a garden hose. He asked what mask and when I said a Breeze, he started laughing fits, and said "good luck" - that as Airsense 10 would cause major water "flooding" with a Breeze - obviously something other people had discovered and they knew about. I sent 2 different machines back to the big online seller and they said the machines were fine. But they only turn them on for a couple of hours - they don't test them with the masks we use for 8 or more hours. So they pronounced it "non-repaired" and shipped it back. So I have a $900 paperweight that I can use to water my garden if I put the Breeze on it. And yes, I know there are tons of people that use the Airsense 10 with climate control just fine with a bunch of different masks. My sense is that it is a little bit - maybe - because of the Breeze - but I think there is a machine problem. But I have met a brick wall because the president of the big online seller said he doesn't give a rat's behind and they are not going to do anything.

I have also tried manual humidity - maximum of 3 - but that still causes substantial regular rainout - enough to cause waking and choking and having the shake out the mask/hose all night. I had also asked the Tech about the inhale/exhale noises on the humidifier, and he said they knew some of the seals were bad and were correcting the problem. So the replacement Airsense 10 they sent had the humidifier bin that sealed properly. So I did get one problem fixed. I still have not decided whether to go all ballistic with the seller or just save the stress and get rid of the beast and move on. I did try it with a nasal mask and it was just a little rainout, but I can't sleep with anything but the Breeze - so lucky me - I pick the machine (at least the broken version) that doesn't work with it.

Just curious - have you tried using the Breeze with the climate control hose and auto humidity? That's where I get the tsunami of water - using manual settings just causes moderate rainout, but still too much water to sleep through the night. My room is at 69 degrees. My S9 has had no rainout for 6 years, but the ResMed geniuses built more humidity into the Airsense 10, and the Tech said he thought it was not a good idea, because many people have had some degree of problems with it - only a few as bad as mine, and the only severe ones he knew of were with the Breeze mask.

[Rick_V]

No I don't use the climate control hose. I actually just started using the AS 10 on January 4. Before that I was using a PR System One REMStar 60 Series Auto which still functions great but, they wanted to give a new machine so now I have a backup. It may be the part of the country I am in I dunno we have pretty high humidity here though too. When I first got the AS 10 I had the humidity set to 3 and noticed I was using hardly any water thought there was something wrong with the machine. The Remstar only had 5 settings.

[bluemom51]

No I don't use the climate control hose. I actually just started using the AS 10 on January 4. Before that I was using a PR System One REMStar 60 Series Auto which still functions great but, they wanted to give a new machine so now I have a backup. It may be the part of the country I am in I dunno we have pretty high humidity here though too. When I first got the AS 10 I had the humidity set to 3 and noticed I was using hardly any water thought there was something wrong with the machine. The Remstar only had 5 settings.

Unless you have a really good life preserver vest in your bedroom, I would highly recommend not using the climate control/auto setting on the Airsense 10 with a Breeze mask - it's not worth spending a couple of weeks trying to get the water out of your lungs and ears and sinuses. Trust me on this.....

[ckingzzzs]

I read some older posts last night where some folks were advised to reduce their upper limit on their APAP's to reduce the clear airway events. The last few months my AHI's have gone from about 4-6 to 8-15 with half being clear airway events. Sleepyhead says my average pressure is 12.8 - 13.8 - that part has been pretty consistent. My settings recently were 10-18. Last night I reduced the upper number to 17 with little effect. I was just wondering with 12.8 - 13.8 average pressure, what most people would set as their range. I've always thought you had to set the upper limit high enough to cover the infrequent times the machine bumps up to 18 - maybe once or twice a night.

I had been using an Airsense 10 for Her but could never control the rainout - whether manual or climate control. That machine stated a higher average of about 13.5-14.5 and it just felt like a "softer" and nicer experience, but the constant drowning caused me to put it away. So I went back to the S9 that has no rainout but feels "rougher" and stronger, but it's average is about one point less - don't know why.

Anyway, if someone could advise on the current thinking on reducing the clear airway events - up until a few months ago, mine were about 1-2 - now they are 4-6. Also I do feel much worse and my sleep quality is pretty terrible - exhausted every day, etc. Thanks for any help.

I can only share my experience with pressure range changes. Do not automatically assume they will work. I had central issues with a resemed airsense 10 and used the machine for 7 months. I played the pressure range game for 3 months on the machine and my centrals got worse. I read the manual, worked with my DSM, and used this highly recommened apneaboard (which I love) to make a number of pressure range changes. Finally, I stopped the cpap and have been trying the vpap now but again with no luck so far after 44 days into it, in controlling my centrals. It looks like a possible ASV for me.


Do try it as it may correct your issues, it just did not for me. One thing I learned though, when you make changes give yourself enough time to see possible results.

[bluemom51]

I read some older posts last night where some folks were advised to reduce their upper limit on their APAP's to reduce the clear airway events. The last few months my AHI's have gone from about 4-6 to 8-15 with half being clear airway events. Sleepyhead says my average pressure is 12.8 - 13.8 - that part has been pretty consistent. My settings recently were 10-18. Last night I reduced the upper number to 17 with little effect. I was just wondering with 12.8 - 13.8 average pressure, what most people would set as their range. I've always thought you had to set the upper limit high enough to cover the infrequent times the machine bumps up to 18 - maybe once or twice a night.

I had been using an Airsense 10 for Her but could never control the rainout - whether manual or climate control. That machine stated a higher average of about 13.5-14.5 and it just felt like a "softer" and nicer experience, but the constant drowning caused me to put it away. So I went back to the S9 that has no rainout but feels "rougher" and stronger, but it's average is about one point less - don't know why.

Anyway, if someone could advise on the current thinking on reducing the clear airway events - up until a few months ago, mine were about 1-2 - now they are 4-6. Also I do feel much worse and my sleep quality is pretty terrible - exhausted every day, etc. Thanks for any help.

I can only share my experience with pressure range changes. Do not automatically assume they will work. I had central issues with a resemed airsense 10 and used the machine for 7 months. I played the pressure range game for 3 months on the machine and my centrals got worse. I read the manual, worked with my DSM, and used this highly recommened apneaboard (which I love) to make a number of pressure range changes. Finally, I stopped the cpap and have been trying the vpap now but again with no luck so far after 44 days into it, in controlling my centrals. It looks like a possible ASV for me.


Do try it as it may correct your issues, it just did not for me. One thing I learned though, when you make changes give yourself enough time to see possible results.

Thanks for the reply - just woke up after 10 hours of a big mess. My appt with sleep doctor number 4 is in 2 weeks - he has reviews of being helpful and not mean and awful. I have avoided them for over 5 years because they have been pretty bad up to this point.

I have tried pretty much everything and am having a lot of clear airway events so I am also thinking maybe an ASV might be a real help to me. Tonight I am trying a nasal mask again - I want to have tried everything I can think of so I will be able to tell him a lot of things we can eliminate as possibilities.

I dread having to do the whole sleep study again because like a lot of people it is more like a sleep nap - fall asleep at 4 and get woken up at 5:30......We will see - but I will try anything at this point if they can tell what's going on with a sleep nap, I'm willing.