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+--- Thread: Is CPAP helping at all? (/Thread-Is-CPAP-helping-at-all)
Is CPAP helping at all? - Winterfrost - 10-24-2018
I just read a thread here about "getting to zero apneas" and it made me wistful. I never see zero. My average is somewhere around 3.0 AHI, with a range of about 1.5 to 6.5 AHI. Thing is, my sleep study ALSO resulted in an AHI of 6.5. That was over Kaiser Permanente's threshold (which I think was 6.0) so I was diagnosed with OSA and issued a CPAP. But since I still occasionally have days over 6.0 AHI, how can I tell if CPAP therapy is helping at all?
I didn't feel especially fatigued or daytime-sleepy prior to being diagnosed, though I did have post-lunch crash at work, and noticed that if I went to the movies in the evening, I might doze off. But I'd mainly gone in for the sleep study because my husband had noticed me snoring a lot, and periodically struggling to breathe... At this point I've been a "hosehead" for 2-1/2 years, and I can't honestly say that anything was changed. I still have post-lunch crash. I still fall asleep during movies. I still have OSA episodes. I still snore.
I have an oximeter and use it occasionally to garner more information. I've tried it both with and without my CPAP. I experience oxygen dips whether or not I'm using the CPAP. They are fewer and less severe on nights with CPAP, but still present, at least 15 per night, with O2 dipping as low as 91%. Without the CPAP I may have twice as many episodes, and usually see one or two brief dips below 90%. That's my only indicator that CPAP therapy might be making *some* kind of difference. But if I don't feel better, how valuable is that?
Any thoughts or ideas would be most welcome.
RE: Is CPAP helping at all? - Walla Walla - 10-24-2018
It sounds like your machine isn't setup right. If you like you can post a couple of daily charts from sleepyhead and someone will help you out.
RE: Is CPAP helping at all? - Sleeprider - 10-24-2018
It would be interesting to see some charts, and especially to know what the event makeup is. Your PRS1 60 Series CPAP is limited in what we can do, but I bet we can give you some ideas.
RE: Is CPAP helping at all? - Sleep2Snore - 10-25-2018
I don't think you are doing to bad, however, there is room for Improvment. Idealy, you should have below 5 but 6 is not that far away.
I think with a few tweets you could get a slight improvement in you results. Even a slight improvement in your results can make a difference to how you feel. If nothing other, you see it lower and this can make you feel better inside.
RE: Is CPAP helping at all? - Vitamin J - 10-25-2018
I normally have anywhere between .5 to 2.0, been as low as 0.3 ...occasionally, i'll have over 2 and it's because my mask leaked on and off throughout the night, at least, that is how it seams...the nights that I fight leaks, i notice my AHI is a lil higher than normal.