SleepyDawg OSCAR Review (Self-Titrated)

[Sleeprider]

I'm not a fan of memory foam or contour pillows. I use a king size medium fill down pillow, and it gives me the loft, flexibility and support I want. It is very adjustable and has no memory. Just suggesting, you don't really want a pillow that looks the same all the time because it's going to fight you, and the claims of ergonomic positioning are only in the minds of the sellers

[SleepyDawg]

The deer camera from Saturday night's session showed I slept almost entirely on my back.  There were very few minutes of side-sleeping.  Saturday night I used the Contour CPAP pillow for the whole night.  There was no evidence of chin drop in any position.

First half of Sunday night was with no pillow.  I slept entirely on my back hence the super-high flow limits and the near-constant snoring. 
I was unable to get back to sleep from 1:30-2:30am.
Second half of the night was with a standard bed pillow.  Slept entirely on my back, flow limits were somewhat lower and snoring was less but still present.
I felt better after the second half of the night.

I realize back sleeping is the worst position for OA.  
I can't seem to stay on either side for any extended period of time due to arthritis in my hips, knees, and shoulders.  
I am still working on the weight with diet and exercise but it's going to take time.

Are there any other ideas given I can't really change my sleep position off my back right now?  

Thank you in advance!

[Sleeprider]

Well, we could improve everything with bilevel, and that is something to consider moving forward. We practically wrote the book on how to do this in Deborah K's thread, Flow Limits, How to Upgrade from CPAP to Bilevel https://www.apneaboard.com/forums/Thread...to-Bilevel

You might try using a second pillow for your knees. I have found a pillow to elevate or tuck behind my knees can alleviate some arthritic pain in the hips and help maintain a more comfortable sleep position.

[SleepyDawg]

Last night I used the regular bed pillow for the whole night.  
Today's chart seems to look pretty good with the lower flow limits and I did not hit "top out" on peak pressures.

I'm still having the middle-of-the-night awakening period and then not able to get back to sleep for some time.  
That interim period length is getting shorter, (normally it is 2 hours), and likely it is persisting due to the Lond-Covid issues.

I'm starting to feel more rested which is good.  
Tonight will be the start of week 3.

One other question: 
Should I still keep my titration study appointment at the hospital sleep lab?  
If so, should I give them my settings and a print out the report to show the AHI's?

[Sleeprider]

I don't see much benefit for you to undergo a titration test. They are simply a protocol that tests your response to different pressures, and recording your respiratory response, sleep state and other data. It's purpose is to identify a single pressure that resolves respiratory events and results in minimal respiratory related arousals. Test facilities vary, but my guess is you'd go home with a recommendation for pressure at 8.0 and they may not even test for EPR as that is effectively a bilevel mode. If you were having more complex events, it might be worthwhile, but you currently have no events, and occasional flow limitation. Personally, I don't like spending time in sleep labs, but you may be more tolerant of that.