RE: Need advice. CPAP is giving me lung issues.
Good job!
RE: Need advice. CPAP is giving me lung issues.
Happy you were able to post your OSCAR chart. Your EPR (3) is on and your flow limits are low. Nice. And your apneas look well controlled. I'm no expert but one thing that jumped out at me while looking at your chart was your leak rate. Pretty high. Is there someone at your DME that you can see regarding sizing of the mask/pillows? Not having such a high leak will make therapy more comfortable.
Re: lung issues. I had a similar problem when starting PAP therapy ... though not as severe as yours. My GERD got very bad before therapy due to my apneas and eating the wrong foods and too close to bedtime. Then when I started therapy waking during the night w/ the burning subsided, but the lung area irritation persisted.
The solution for me was two-fold.
1). Adopt a low acid diet and avoid foods e.g. caffeine, chocolate, alcohol that cause reflux and weaken the LES allowing acid to back up. Two leading doctors in the area are Jamie Koufman and Jonathan Aviv. Both have written books, and have information on their websites, about LPR (silent reflux) but what they wrote concerning stomach acid and pepsin also applies to regular acid reflux / GERD. Both can contribute to lung discomfort as well as throat and breathing problems. I found that by keeping the pH levels of my food and beverages above 5.0 made a big difference with my reflux. And my similar symptoms are slowly subsiding. Also, drinking alkaline water with a PH between 8 and 9 is great for disabling the pepsin that eats at your airway.
2. No eating at least 3 hours before bed (4 is even better). And if possible get a wedge to raise the head of your bed 7 to 8 inches. That way there is minimal material in your stomach to reflux and if you do, gravity will pull it back to your stomach versus laying flat and having it stay there.
Since your issue seems to be lungs and not so much esophagus, it does sound like LPR inflaming your lungs and likely your airway. The above should help.
Good luck, I hope this has been beneficial.
"the quieter you become, the more you are able to hear"