Irregular flow rate 3 or 4 times a night showing in OSCAR

[Provolone]

Hello,

I'm wondering about the occasional (maybe periodic) irregular flow rates that occur 3 or 4 times a night and how to stop them b/c I think they are disrupting my sleep (see attachments)?

I'm finally at the tail-end of figuring out my sleep position and settings with PAP machine & masks. I figured out the hard way that I need a full face mask (triple-taped, and my mouth still opens up at night), and through my experiments am pretty sure I block my airways unless I sleep supine without a pillow. I've had sleep issue probably since I was a kid (fatigue, zoning out, memory issues, and some others) and didn't realize it; last night I tried sleeping without the machine and all these issue suddenly came back...I do not miss them.

Anyway, this is the final piece of the puzzle. The F30i is working wonders for me; it's just that I'm getting these irregular flow rates now and then. I'm fairly certain they're adversely affecting my sleep but I'm not sure what's causing them – I am sound asleep when they occur.

           

[Old Steve]

I run in CPAP mode with 10cm pressure, I have found that running the EPR at 3 is where I get the best results.  Might be worth a try...

[Provolone]

I can give that a shot. It's hard for me to go to sleep with EPR on, but I think there's a setting to only turn it on once I'm asleep.

[CPAPfriend]

You do still have unresolved flow limitation, so you're not wrong in believing that there's still improvement to be gained by optimizing the flowrate. That said, much of the irregular flow rate that I observe is occurring at ~1.5 hr intervals, suggesting that it's occurring during REM, which is common. That is, our breathing during REM sleep is expectedly more volatile and irregular.

Nonetheless, we can work to further eliminate the remaining flow limitation, and the first therapeutic adjustment would be to enable EPR and start at 1cm. If you choose to do so, it's commonly also recommended to increase your pressure by 1cm, provided you're on the fixed 11cm that I see in your profile.

[Provolone]

Ahhh I was wondering if it had to do with some part of my sleep cycle. Thanks!

I did EPR 3 for the past 3 nights, and it has improved the flow limitation and look of the flow rate (plus I feel quite a bit better in the morning compared to before the EPR).

I guess I can keep it here... or I can optimize further. There are still CAs. I've attached 2 of the last 3 nights (I left the AC too cold for one of the nights and it messed me up, so not going to include that one). Not sure if caused by me sort of waking up and changing positions and going back to sleep (another thread mentioned that) or if they're legitimate Central Apneas? Not sure if increasing or decreasing the pressure will help (or something else)?