wrong machine or wrong settings?

[tiredmonkey]

This is driving met nuts..

I've been using this machine for a while now and I keep on getting worse..  I doest seem like Obstructive and most of the events are clear airway and hypo events..

the worst SPO2 drops are because of hypopneas..

without the machine te SPO2 events drops to pretty darn low, like 80% or lower...

I'm starting to think the doc prescribed the wrong machine and I need to be on BiPap or ASV ? I currently have a Philips Dreamstation Auto

Here is a screenshot of a "good" night.. and seems my bad nights used to be 6.5 AHI, but they are getting worse..

Any thoughts or suggested tweaks??

[OpalRose]

Just a suggestion. You could try doing without the Flex setting. Turn it to off.
That may help reduce the CA’s, although they are not too bad.

And at the same time, move your minimum pressure to 8cm, that may Clear up some of the hypopneas.

A Respironics machine is slower to react, so putting it at 8cm which is closer to your 95% pressure may help.

[Ockrocket]

I love my Dreamstation..

It is set on a fixed pressure of 8 after I adjusted it upwards myself due to feeling short of air sometimes when I first went to bed at night.

It can take a bit to get any machine tweaked to specific personal needs.. hang in there and you will figure it all out in the end.

[ajack]

+1 for min 8, it should clear up some H, we may finish up on 9?
max can be brought down later.
flex as comfortable, as was said the CA aren't too bad and should settle within 12 weeks of cpap.

[hegel]

Hypopneas are my main issue too. I steadily adjusted my minimum pressure upward in increments to 9, I think...maybe 81/2. My maximum tends to be 10.5--so, not that much difference. Before I adjusted my minimum up my AHI tended to be 2.5 or so over a thirty days average. Now, my AHI is 0.5 average for 30 days very consistently. I was told that a higher minimum pressure is a good approach to hypopneas, and it's certainly worked for me.

[tiredmonkey]

bumped it up to 8..  my AHI doubled..

I'll give it a few nights..  

[OpalRose]

If you turn the Flex setting off, you may see the CA’s lessen. This doesn’t work for everyone, but you won’t know if you don’t try.

[ajack]

The philips is a bit slow for H, I would now set the min to 9.
Although I know it would be concerning. The odds are that the CA are pressure induced and will resolve within 12 weeks. As has been said, seeing they have jumped, you can try tuning the flex down or off till they settle.

A lot of times, the new user ca is just the body balancing the 02 and co2 levels. cpap doesn't treat Clear Airways, what the machine records. The cpap Clear airway, just means that you stopped breathing with your throat unobstructed. Like a long sigh
It isn't necessarily a central nervous system disorder apnea, called a central apnea. If it is bad and persistent, another machine is used. I don't see your CA as a big problem, even though it raised your AHI. I think that it is a side effect that will settle.