Adjusting pressure

[tt1106]

Good afternoon c-pappers. First off....long time lurker, first time poster. :YAY:
A little about me...diagnosed last July. 100 percent compliant since then and the usual miracle of a turned around life. Finally got the wife to go for a sleep study later this month. Mostly because I KNOW she has Apnea and I know how miraculous it has been since I got my C-Pap. Now the question. I'm a techie so, of course, I have been enthralled with finding out my numbers and assisting my doc in managing my care. I have RESMED and I know how to adjust the pressures but I have not. My CPAP is set at 9 and my AHI's average between 5 and 7-8. Mostly hovering around the 7 mark. I would like to adjust pressure, but I'm not sure what a good number to adjust would be. I'm thinking .1 until the AHI's come down.....Can you indicate if this is acceptable or answer with a safe number...i.e. .5 ish? I understand that you are not my doctor and I am taking full responsibility for any adverse affects form adjusting my airflow. I do this being of sound mind (thanks to the c-pap) and body. Thanks.

[PaulaO2]

Well, I'd say go .5 for two weeks then again if no result happens. Pay attention to the central events number. But at .5, it should be fine. The longer you go, the more you will see a trend. Two weeks is about right for odd events, bad nights, and the like to level off.

Write it all down. When you raised it, by how much, etc. That way when you go to check it, you have all the facts. May want to also start a sleep diary. Write down before you turn off the light what kind of day you had, what happened differently (big enough to impact sleep), if you had anything alcoholic to drink, etc. Then, in the morning, write down how your night was in terms of sleep quality. Then in two weeks, you can look at the diary and the graphs and can figure out how it is all working.

You want that AHI to be less than 5.

[tt1106]

Thanks for the great insight. I'll give the diary a try. I can't tell you how helpful this board has already been.

[zonk]

Hi tt1106, welcome to the forum
AHI 5 or bit over is not a big deal if you,re feeling better and miraculously as you put it is a good indicator that the therapy is working for you.
If you,re going to tweak the pressure read this thread first
http://www.apneaboard.com/adjust-cpap-pr...re-on-cpap

Whats the leak and breakdown of AHI?
If you,re using Ramp or EPR turn them off and see it make any difference.
Resscan software is a valuable tool to monitor your therapy, here is the link to the download
http://www.apneaboard.com/forums/Thread-...n-3-16-SP1

Best of luck to your wife for the upcoming sleep study

[Sleepster]

My CPAP is set at 9 and my AHI's average between 5 and 7-8.

Is your AHI dominated by CA's? If not, try raising the pressure to 10 or 11.

[tt1106]

Thanks Guys....I read those before I posted.
Most of my events are obstructions?
Very few leaks. That line is almost flat. Most of the AHI's coincide with Obstructions varying from 10-20. Thanks again.

[zonk]

Most of my events are obstructions?

I would turn EPR off and make sure sleep on my side and monitor the results on the software (ResScan or SleepyHead) bc if it can take care of AHI than its better than raising the pressure imo
Why you,re unsure about the humidifier?

[tt1106]

Thanks again for the feedback.....
Zonk, I turned EPR off last night and noticed a big difference. I'm not sure I understand the last question. I use the humidifier and keep it pretty much cranked up. I turned the pressure up to 10 last night. I slept for 7.25 hours. I feel great this morning.

[zonk]

Thanks again for the feedback.....
Zonk, I turned EPR off last night and noticed a big difference. I'm not sure I understand the last question. I use the humidifier and keep it pretty much cranked up. I turned the pressure up to 10 last night. I slept for 7.25 hours. I feel great this morning.

This is good news.
The question related to the "unsure" in your profile about the humidifier so I wasn't sure if you,re using humidifier or not

[PaulaO2]

Since you have the S9 machine, you have the H5i humidifier.

EPR is purely for comfort and not for treatment. However, a lot of people report better sleep with it off. And just as many report better sleep with it on.