Questions from a newbie
I went for a sleep test a a year ago which said I had severe sleep apnea and they recommended provent, I did not like it they didn't stay on my face they were uncomfortable. So I did the normal thing and did nothing else.
My stats and results from the first test
BMI 22
Age 32
Male
Overall AHI: 22.6
I'm not sure what my oxygen levels were she said they were low and went under 90 but not by much and not for a long time.
Fast forward to now I did a titration test the person who monitors me during the night said that while the report said severe it wasn't that bad compared to others with severe apnea and said they normally recommend provent for those people. I kept wondering why is there such a big push for provent?? Is it good and I just didn't try hard enough as I don't like the thought of paying $100/month for the rest of my life.
The recommended cpap was 4cmh20 via a fixed pressure preferably with a humidifier.
I've done some reading about all the cpap machine's out there (before I got the results) and was tossing up between A10 and Dreamstation. But with these results is this overkill... Any guide on what I should be looking at?
Much appreciated.
RE: Questions from a newbie
Welcome to Apnea Board.
Your AHI of 22.6 is moderate - above 30 is regarded as severe. So you would likely benefit from treatment, and the gold standard is CPAP. I'm surprised that you were titrated at 4 cm - that is a very low pressure. Many people find they can't breathe comfortably with such a low pressure. If possible get hold of your sleep reports and see what they actually say.
I haven't had any personal experience of Provent, but it doesn't seem to have a great reputation.
02-03-2016, 10:37 AM
(This post was last modified: 02-03-2016, 10:39 AM by rhodesengr.)
RE: Questions from a newbie
Well maybe they were just trying to save you money and the hassle of using a CPAP machine. I was told to use one 10 years ago, tried it for a while and stopped using it. Now for the last month, I have one of the newer machines and I am sticking with it. Its an adjustment either way. Getting used to sleeping with anything on your face takes time. I am not sleeping through the night but my apnea symptoms have gone away.
One thing with Provent though is that it doesn't take data so you can tell how well its working in a quatitative way.
You should not have to pay $100 a month for the rest of your life. Cost depends on your insurance but I would think at the very least you could get a prescription from your Dr. and just buy on online outright.
My PR System One looks to be $440 online without the heated humidifier and heated tube. $520 including the humidifier and heated tube.
If you go through insurance, avoid Apria at all costs. I am stuck with them because I have Kaiser and Kaiser uses Apria. But Kaiser bought me the machine outright so now I have just have to deal with Apria for supplies. They get nothing right the first three times.
RE: Questions from a newbie
I'm from Australia and the private health insurance I have does not cover these sorts of things.
The $100/month was for provent which are things that stick to your nose and replace each night.
I will try to get a copy of the latest sleep report. I have a copy of the first one sleep test.
Is there such thing as overkill with machine's? This might be a hard questions to answer without knowing full details but should I be looking at a apap or will cpap work fine?
RE: Questions from a newbie
(02-03-2016, 03:40 PM)Dr Marshall Wrote: The $100/month was for provent which are things that stick to your nose and replace each night.
Is there such thing as overkill with machine's? This might be a hard questions to answer without knowing full details but should I be looking at a apap or will cpap work fine?
OIC. I thought that was a quote for rental on a CPAP. My first CPAP machine (10 years ago) was first on a rental basis but eventually the insurance company bought it for me. The rental company kept charging me rental for a while and it was a big hassle.
I can't really advise you about CPAP vs APAP but i can sharge my personal impressions. My current machine is an Auto. I've been looking at my data and don't really understand what causes the machine to increase the pressure. Me personally, I don't see a lot of pressure fluctuations. It also seems to me that if you only have a few isolated events, the machine is not fast enough to respond. So now that I have seen my data I am pretty sure a constant pressure would be fine since the machine does not turn it up much or often anyway. Since your test was even lower than mine (mine was 27) I imagine you could get by with a constant machine.
That being said, the auto ones can be set to be constant so if you can afford an auto one, might as well get that because you can always "dumb it down"
RE: Questions from a newbie
Hi Dr Marshall,
WELCOME! to the forum.!
Consider getting an AutoPap machine because that way, you could either use it in straight CPAP (fixed pressure) mode, or put a range of pressures, for example 7/20CM H2O,in it, thus using it in APAP mode.
Hang in there for more answers to your questions and I hope I didn’t confuse you too much, (Ha-Ha.)
Much success to you as you start your CPAP journey.
trish6hundred
RE: Questions from a newbie
I have to say I don't much like the idea of Provent, and it is an ongoing expense. In your position I'd go for a machine - and get an APAP. Initially start with the machine set with minimum = 4 cm, maximum = 12 cm and see what happens. Download SleepyHead software to monitor the results in detail and see what's happening from there.
The thing with a APAP is that it effectively does a sleep study every night by automatically adjusting to your needs, which can vary through the night and over time. A constant pressure CPAP requires a lot of manual intervention to home in on the appropriate pressure.
It constantly riles me to see the way the populists / marketers are driving the health funds here. They'll pay for homeopathy (which is certifiable crap) but won't pay a reasonable amount for a CPAP machine which may well head off chronic illnesses in future. It also riles me that you can get a Resmed machine in the States for half the price here. I suggest you check out the suppliers list (link at the top of the page) and look at buying a machine there. Suppliers 1, 2 and 10 will sell to Australia, as far as I am aware. Supplier 1 requires a prescription but (I believe) the others don't. Your doc won't be able to use a standard PBS prescription form but can provide a letter to take the place of the prescription.
RE: Questions from a newbie
(02-03-2016, 03:40 PM)Dr Marshall Wrote: I'm from Australia and the private health insurance I have does not cover these sorts of things.
The $100/month was for provent which are things that stick to your nose and replace each night.
I will try to get a copy of the latest sleep report. I have a copy of the first one sleep test.
Is there such thing as overkill with machine's? This might be a hard questions to answer without knowing full details but should I be looking at a apap or will cpap work fine?
You got conned by someone with stock in Provent, or trying to sell that garbage. A CPAP would have solved your problem, and is the only recognized treatment for anything beyond mild aponea. You pay more for positive air pressure machines in AU, but it's still the best solution. Insist in getting a CPAP (preferably auto-CPAP) and let us know how we can help. With auto CPAP you can self-titrate pressure without further studies, and more comfortably. Get back on-board.
