Does CPAP/APAP therapy cause any side effects?

[Adam Szczyglo]

Hi,

I am new here,  I bought my first CPAP machine only 2 days ago. Yet I can clearly state positive impact on my physical condition is really beyond my mind Polysomnography had diagnosed my AHI =69/1 h so when it dropped to 5 in one day You can only imagine how fantastically I started to feel (polysomnography took 6,5 hrs, of which 2,5 hrs was apnea, 144 minutes of not breathing literally). I do not know much about how to read Oscar results  yet and how to adjust settings, but before I get familiar with this and start making some bigger changes I kindly ask everyone to share his/her personal knowdledge on my below question(s):

1 Does APAP/CPAP therapy cause any serious or less serious side effects on lungs or body condition in general? 
2. If answer on question 1 is "yes",  - What levels of pressure or other factors/settings in my CPAP machine should not be exceeded to avoid (which) side effects ?))

Thank You all in advance for reply/advice.

with kind regards

Adam

[Sleeprider]

Congrats on your successful start to therapy. That is the norm, and a very good sign. We often see unwanted side-effects to CPAP, but in most cases, if you were experiencing them, you would be the first to know. Aerophagia (air-swallowing) is common, nasal and throat irritation if air is not properly conditioned or large leaks are present, discomfort or marks from masks, discomfort exhaling against pressure, sleep disruptions from leaks or equipment or air escaping from the mouth, and some individuals show therapy induced central apnea. The response to any of these issues vary, but all have been addressed many times on this forum. Unless you are affected, there is no reason to write a book on the subject on this post. If you take a look at the Optimizing Therapy wiki linked in my signature, you will get a pretty good idea of what we often do.

[G. Szabo]

Additional side effect: CPAP can worsen glaucoma. You can search this forum for "glaucoma" to learn more about this issue.