05-17-2024, 12:29 PM
RE: Have I missed anything for testing or treatment options?
A few thoughts.
There's a good chance the CAs will settle down on their own. In any case, they probably occur after arousals (from one sleep-stage to another, or from sleep to waking). See below for examples. You can zoom in on your flow rate to see if that's what's happening. If it is, then the arousals, rather than the CAs, are the basic problem.
Here's a little more about CAs. Skip it if it doesn't interest you.
CAs often occur after deeper breathing. Arousal breathing tends to be deeper than ordinary asleep breathing; also, recovery breathing after a CA or OA can be deeper, triggering another CA. This means that CAs can come in clusters.
There are two theories about the causes of the kinds of CAs you're seeing. One is that the deeper breathing depletes the CO2 in your bloodstream that triggers a "breathe now" signal to your brain. Another is that sensors in your chest wall pause your breathing when they detect unusual expansion.
About your OAs. There aren't very many of them, but they tend to be clustered, which suggests that you may be tucking your chin toward your chest. If you use a high pillow, or several pillows, try using a single, fairly low and firm pillow.
About your settings. You may get hassled about changing the settings yourself, but you are free to do so. The statement that you need a change in your prescription is incorrect. I would recommend raising your minimum to 7 so you can get the full benefit of your EPR of 3. The EPR drops your pressure when you exhale, but the machine can't go lower than 4. Hence the recommended minimum of 7.
In addition, a higher minimum might help to head off some of the OAs you're seeing, though I suspect you'd need to set the minimum higher than 7 to have that benefit. But don't worry about that now.
It can take a while to see benefits from using CPAP, so it's best to hang in there for at least three months or so.
There's a good chance the CAs will settle down on their own. In any case, they probably occur after arousals (from one sleep-stage to another, or from sleep to waking). See below for examples. You can zoom in on your flow rate to see if that's what's happening. If it is, then the arousals, rather than the CAs, are the basic problem.
Here's a little more about CAs. Skip it if it doesn't interest you.
CAs often occur after deeper breathing. Arousal breathing tends to be deeper than ordinary asleep breathing; also, recovery breathing after a CA or OA can be deeper, triggering another CA. This means that CAs can come in clusters.
There are two theories about the causes of the kinds of CAs you're seeing. One is that the deeper breathing depletes the CO2 in your bloodstream that triggers a "breathe now" signal to your brain. Another is that sensors in your chest wall pause your breathing when they detect unusual expansion.
About your OAs. There aren't very many of them, but they tend to be clustered, which suggests that you may be tucking your chin toward your chest. If you use a high pillow, or several pillows, try using a single, fairly low and firm pillow.
About your settings. You may get hassled about changing the settings yourself, but you are free to do so. The statement that you need a change in your prescription is incorrect. I would recommend raising your minimum to 7 so you can get the full benefit of your EPR of 3. The EPR drops your pressure when you exhale, but the machine can't go lower than 4. Hence the recommended minimum of 7.
In addition, a higher minimum might help to head off some of the OAs you're seeing, though I suspect you'd need to set the minimum higher than 7 to have that benefit. But don't worry about that now.
It can take a while to see benefits from using CPAP, so it's best to hang in there for at least three months or so.
