03-17-2017, 09:05 AM
change in mask
Hi all- just interested in your opinions relative to a change in strategy that I tried last night. I was diagnosed with moderated sleep apnea about 3 months ago and have been using a mask for about the past two. Since I am a mouth breather because of constant nasal congestion from allergies, I was advised to use a full face mask. I started out with a Simplus and then went with an amara view which I liked better. However, my numbers have not been consistently where I think they should be- from a stress test that I took back in January, I received a diagnosis of pretty high pulmonary hypertension- the consensus has been that untreated sleep apnea and asthma have been the cause- because of this, it is imperative that I use the CPAP consistently to get those pulmonary pressures down- in fact, I had a repeat echo last week and, in fact, there was a fairly significant reduction in those pulmonary pressures.
My AHI's have been fairly inconsistent- anywhere from a low of 2.6 up to a high of 9.5 over the past 2 months`- this past week has been particularly troublesome for me since the last 5 days I have not been below 5. In addition to using the masks, I had also purchased a SomnDent classic dental appliance because early on I decided that using the mask may be a problem for me. After I received the report of elevated pulmonary pressures I decided that I was going to use both- the dental appliance and the mask. Two nights ago I decided that I would try just my mask with no dental device to see what would happen- my number was 7.5!- not feeling real good about that I tried a different tactic last night- about three weeks ago I bought a RespironicsDream Wear nasal mask. I know that would not have been something recommended for me because of my mouth breathing but I read about it and thought it sounded like something that may be worth a try as long as I could keep my mouth closed- hence, I thought if I use the dental device with it maybe that might help! I woke up this morning and after uploading the info I was amazed at the results- my AHI was 1- the thing that really stood out was the fact that the number of hypopneas were significantly reduced- in the past, that has been the highest number by far each night- generally averaging above 30- last night there were 2. I am thrilled with the numbers and will be curious as to what subsequent nights will be- are there any thoughts as to what would account for such a dramatic change or, could it be just an anomaly- (please say that isn't so!) Thanks!
My AHI's have been fairly inconsistent- anywhere from a low of 2.6 up to a high of 9.5 over the past 2 months`- this past week has been particularly troublesome for me since the last 5 days I have not been below 5. In addition to using the masks, I had also purchased a SomnDent classic dental appliance because early on I decided that using the mask may be a problem for me. After I received the report of elevated pulmonary pressures I decided that I was going to use both- the dental appliance and the mask. Two nights ago I decided that I would try just my mask with no dental device to see what would happen- my number was 7.5!- not feeling real good about that I tried a different tactic last night- about three weeks ago I bought a RespironicsDream Wear nasal mask. I know that would not have been something recommended for me because of my mouth breathing but I read about it and thought it sounded like something that may be worth a try as long as I could keep my mouth closed- hence, I thought if I use the dental device with it maybe that might help! I woke up this morning and after uploading the info I was amazed at the results- my AHI was 1- the thing that really stood out was the fact that the number of hypopneas were significantly reduced- in the past, that has been the highest number by far each night- generally averaging above 30- last night there were 2. I am thrilled with the numbers and will be curious as to what subsequent nights will be- are there any thoughts as to what would account for such a dramatic change or, could it be just an anomaly- (please say that isn't so!) Thanks!
