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+--- Thread: Palpitations/shortness of breath common with APAP treatment? (/Thread-Palpitations-shortness-of-breath-common-with-APAP-treatment)
Palpitations/shortness of breath common with APAP treatment? - photolabrat - 04-18-2020
I've been on my APAP for close to two months now and have noticed that my heart palpitations/shortness of breath has been coming back. I'm being treated for hyperthyroidism which can also cause those symptoms, but had my levels checked this week and they came back within range. I'm also on a beta blocker which should help and it did for a few months, but now they're back and my ENT says it's not related to my thyroid.
My question is, are these symptoms common with APAP treatment? Am I still in an adjustment period? Do I need to see a sleep doc/my GP? I'm really trying not to right now since you know, everything. If it's normal, I'll just tough it out. My GP said I could up my beta blocker if I feel I need to.
RE: Palpitations/shortness of breath common with APAP treatment? - DeepBreathing - 04-18-2020
I had the opposite experience - the use of CPAP (or more specifically ASV) completely cured my heart palpitations. The question for you is "Is your machine providing the right therapy to control / eliminate apneas, which are the indirect cause of palpitations?" What does MyAir show?
If you're having trouble with your therapy, download and install OSCAR and post a screenshot here. We may be able to see something that needs adjusting.
RE: Palpitations/shortness of breath common with APAP treatment? - photolabrat - 04-18-2020
I just upped my pressure from 6 to 7 to 8 to 9 within the past week. Maybe not a great idea, but I did have my docs blessing to turn it up. I probably shouldn't have turned it up so quickly? I felt like I wasn't getting enough air at 6 and 7. Not sure where I should stay-I felt ok at 7, better at 8 and good at 9. I have Oscar, just haven't figured out how to manipulate the charts and post pics here yet (Macbook). I'll work on that.
RE: Palpitations/shortness of breath common with APAP treatment? - Gideon - 04-18-2020
Download OSCAR
go to View/Reset Graphs/Standard
F12 Screenshot - it will be saved in your pictures directory
Attach it to your post, see my signature for how.
This will give exactly what we want to see.
RE: Palpitations/shortness of breath common with APAP treatment? - photolabrat - 04-18-2020
Attached a few ss to my post above just to get a feel for how to do it. I still may need to fine tune the data if what you need isn't showing up. Let me know.
RE: Palpitations/shortness of breath common with APAP treatment? - Sleeprider - 04-18-2020
Results from your Airsense 10 Autoset For her at 9-18 pressure EPR 3 are excellent with less than 1 AHI and a range of pressure of 9 to 12 cm. Whatever other problems are coming up, are not likely related to your CPAP therapy. I think a lot of our members here would be very pleased to get results like this. It would help to see the flow rate chart included as recommended in the Organizing Your Oscar Charts wiki, http://www.apneaboard.com/wiki/index.php?title=OSCAR_Chart_Organization, but this looks nearly perfect.
RE: Palpitations/shortness of breath common with APAP treatment? - StevesSp - 04-18-2020
Not trying to be pedantic, but are you suffering palpitations or ectopic beats, which many people mistake for palpitations? It's important to know. Ectopic beats are usually harmless, though they can be distressing when you're having lots of them, and this can lead to anxiety and shortness of breath.
I've had ectopic beats since I had a heart attack in 2008. Stress can trigger them. I take a beta blocker currently, which helps but doesn't stop them completely.
RE: Palpitations/shortness of breath common with APAP treatment? - photolabrat - 04-18-2020
(04-18-2020, 09:30 PM)StevesSp Wrote: Not trying to be pedantic, but are you suffering palpitations or ectopic beats, which many people mistake for palpitations? It's important to know. Ectopic beats are usually harmless, though they can be distressing when you're having lots of them, and this can lead to anxiety and shortness of breath.
I've had ectopic beats since I had a heart attack in 2008. Stress can trigger them. I take a beta blocker currently, which helps but doesn't stop them completely.
You know, I'm honestly not sure. I've never been evaluated for any heart issues related to the shortness of breath/"palpitations" or whatever they may actually be. I think it was assumed to be related to my hyperthyroid levels and they ran with that based on the description of what I was feeling. I'll read up on ectopic beats because I've never heard of them and don't have a clue what the difference is and talk to my docs. Thank you!
RE: Palpitations/shortness of breath common with APAP treatment? - photolabrat - 04-18-2020
(04-18-2020, 09:06 PM)Sleeprider Wrote: Results from your Airsense 10 Autoset For her at 9-18 pressure EPR 3 are excellent with less than 1 AHI and a range of pressure of 9 to 12 cm. Whatever other problems are coming up, are not likely related to your CPAP therapy. I think a lot of our members here would be very pleased to get results like this. It would help to see the flow rate chart included as recommended in the Organizing Your Oscar Charts wiki, http://www.apneaboard.com/wiki/index.php?title=OSCAR_Chart_Organization, but this looks nearly perfect.
Thank you so much for the reassurance. On the surface, it looks like my AHI is within normal range, but with the symptoms returning, I wasn't sure if it was related to something sleep apnea related that I missed, being a noob and all... Thanks again!
RE: Palpitations/shortness of breath common with APAP treatment? - StevesSp - 04-18-2020
(04-18-2020, 09:41 PM)photolabrat Wrote:(04-18-2020, 09:30 PM)StevesSp Wrote: Not trying to be pedantic, but are you suffering palpitations or ectopic beats, which many people mistake for palpitations? It's important to know. Ectopic beats are usually harmless, though they can be distressing when you're having lots of them, and this can lead to anxiety and shortness of breath.
I've had ectopic beats since I had a heart attack in 2008. Stress can trigger them. I take a beta blocker currently, which helps but doesn't stop them completely.
You know, I'm honestly not sure. I've never been evaluated for any heart issues related to the shortness of breath/"palpitations" or whatever they may actually be. I think it was assumed to be related to my hyperthyroid levels and they ran with that based on the description of what I was feeling. I'll read up on ectopic beats because I've never heard of them and don't have a clue what the difference is and talk to my docs. Thank you!
From a UK site:
Your heart may feel like it's pounding, fluttering or beating irregularly, often for just a few seconds or minutes. You may also feel these sensations in your throat or neck.
Palpitations may seem alarming, but in most cases they're harmless and are not a sign of a serious problem.
Sometimes you may feel an extra or missed beat. These are known as ectopic beats and are also usually nothing to worry about.
Because I've been having ectopic beats for some years, I have become familiar with them and, if I put a finger on my neck (as when checking my pulse), I can feel the pause or "missed beat" then a couple of fast beats when the heart tries to 'catch up'. When I'm stressed, dehydrated or tired, I can have these ectopic beats for many hours - all day sometimes. If it gets too bad, I go to bed and read for an hour or so, which often helps.