A MUST READ..BP corrected

[needingu2]

I have been wearing the cpap for 3 years and thought this worth reporting. My BP ran 210/98+ many times over the last 10 years, may meds tried and discarded, diet, exercised. I've tried it all.
A Ecogram was done 3 years ago and found my heart was enlarged on the right side. The Dr. said ,"we are seeing that in people who have apnea", so the test was ordered. I found my O2 was in the 70's at night. I started the treatment with the cpap, have been hating it for a long time and suddenly a couple months ago I found my BP was down considerably....this morning it was 139/68...
I have cut my medication in half (haven't told the Dr. yet) but I am sleeping 8-10 hrs feel rested. Also another sign that things are getting back to normal, I have been having vivid dreams which I had not had for years. I notice I yawn in the evening and realized that I had not been doing that for ages. You the stretch yawn relaxed feeling. Now maybe and maybe not that all these things are the results of wearing the mask each night ..all night I cannot not say but it sure looks positive. So WEAR THAT MASK AS DIRECTED. Start dreaming, yawning, BP down..I don't see a down side. My very best friend is now the mask without feeling embarassed..I do not cover my head with the sheet any more.

[nedingu2]

A follow-up Ecocardiogram is scheduled next Tues.....anxious to see what has changed. Update later.

[dsm]

Needingu2,

That is a very interesting progress. I would have though those numbers you quoted to be near fatal so I think you can be sure that cpap has made a big difference. It is very rewarding to see substantial improvement & your data shows that !. Your heart is your most precious of all organs & if it is getting better after such a find then your life is extending itself

Good going

DSM

[Captain_Midnight]

NU2 reports bp delta from 210/98+ (whoa!) to 139/68 after 3 yrs pappian therapy.

A job well done (but still a work in progress, would you agree?)

If you do not mind, I have a couple of questions.

First, was the drop in bp precipitous at some point, or was it slow and continuous? Do you happen to know if there are differences in pulse rate? And,

Have there been any changes in therapy (pressure, machine type or settings, leaks, humidifier) or lifestyle (diet, meds, supplements) that might correlate to the bp drop?

A systolic drop of 70 mmHg! This is truly excellent.

Thanks in advance! - - Capt M.


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[needingu]

I am truly excited also. I have been battleing the high BP in every way for years. I have not lost so much weight but I do continually try to eat healthy. I include chocolate"cocoa" in my coffee, eat dark chocolate moderately. Maybe 1 slice brown bread a day. I did do exercise at the wellness center until gardening time when I just did not have time to do housework,flowers and exercise so something had to be dropped . Not on a strenous diet but careful.But then I've done that for years. In the early spring I noted my Bp was mostly in the 150/80 range and then I took another "spell" of taking my BP and recording before the Nov 18 checkup and found my pressure in the 130/70 give or take 4-5 points. I have tried to look back to see what am I doing differently. I can only conclude its a combination of all of the above and the cpap. I can hardly believe it myself. Now I'm almost afraid to believe it will stay down..We will see...
I truly feel I have gradually healed from whatever the apnea had caused. The Ecocardiogram should show the difference.
I know I feel the difference. Now if I can keep it going. Huh? I stay busy ..work in renovating a historical home..furnishing and decorating.
Thank you for you interest.

[needingu]

Oh, I forgot your question re the pulse. It has been in the 54-60 range for a long time. I suppose due to the BP meds. Toprol XL 100 mg b.i.d. and Benicar 40/25 mg q.d,. Since the drop in BP I take 1 Toprol XL daily and 1/2 tab of the Benicar. (Got to tell my physician..nurses have a way of trying to make their own decisions) I'll talk to him next week.
I am using the same machine, pressure, have tried other masks but ALWAYS felt more comfortable with the Comfortgel
Nasal mask so it does not take me long to go back to it. No difference in therapy in any way.

[Snoredog]

Well it is nice to see it come down, but you are FAR from reducing your medication, anything over 120/80 (either number) is Hypertension. Hypertension does a lot of irreversible damage to your kidneys and every other organ not to mention the damage to the arteries.

Which medication used is a gamble but I would be trying something else. With Systolic so high I would want something like a A.C.E. inhibitor like Lisinopril or other that relaxes and dilates the blood vessel making it easier on the heart. That is why your heart is enlarged, clogged arteries and overworked heart. You might have to take a potassium supplement with it but that is no big deal, any multi-vitamin would have that.

Good progress but you really have to get that Hypertension down and keep it down. Ask your Cardiologist about Niaspan (Niacin). Ask to get your CRP levels checked, if high they will probably give Crestor (current fad hehehe), but also consider a daily aspirin to fight the arterial inflammation.

Use of CPAP removes the hypoxia condition and goes a long way in reducing that arterial inflammation. Cells die when they don't get oxygen, same for the cells making up the lining of your arteries. Regular high dose of Vitamin C is thought to help with restoring flexibility of those hardened arteries, that an the niacin.

[Paul56]

My highest BP was recorded earlier in the summer at 170/100. I've had a higher than normal blood pressure reading for many years. In my younger days I attribute that to "white coat" syndrome. Unfortunately back then did not have my own BP machine so was unable to confirm that.

The Doc has me on 160mg Diovan & 12.5 mg Novo-Hydrazide (diuretic) in the AM along with 9mg Coversyl in the PM before bed. This has the BP reasonably well controlled. Just took a reading that reports 124/71 with a pulse of 71... of course this varies.

I am fairly certain getting on the hose has had an effect on my BP. The other component to this is losing weight... of which I do have a few pounds to lose. I am still struggling with getting the weight off... pushing a keyboard and shuffling papers for a living does not help the situation. I know... that is not an excuse. There was a time when I was not on meds that despite high blood pressure readings most of the time if I took a reading in the morning it would read normal. At some point that changed to being quite high in the morning.

I am hoping to get off most of those meds eventually but don't think that will happen until I drop 50 pounds to give the Doc and myself some level of confidence the BP won't shoot up again.

I agree with "needingu2" that getting hosed has a lowering effect on the BP... but in my case there is another piece to the puzzle which includes losing weight and getting regular exercise.

[needingu]

Snoredog...
I like the slogan at the bottom of your message,"Someday science will catch up with what you are saying"thats good.
Lets see the K+ I do have a half of banana daily, fish oil capsule, multivitamin, simvastatin(for chol), 81 mg aspirin,
Q 10, vit C,, have blueberries,strawberries daily, broccolli. Appreciate your input. All the help I can get is great.
Tell me more.
Thanks

[Snoredog]

DiovanHCT worked pretty good for me, but I had to switch because of the leg and muscle cramps in my calves and thighs. Switched to Lisinopril and that went away.

Great article by Dr. Don Silverburg, he's back in the States now
Treating Obstructive Sleep Apnea Improves Essential Hypertension and Quality of Life
http://www.aafp.org/afp/20020115/229.html

[BeanMeScot]

Here is my BP thread. viewtopic.php?f=1&t=36234&p=313204#p313204

My BP wasn't high yet but it was getting into a prehypertension area. It has come down since starting CPAP. I had noticed it was going down and thought it corresponded with starting CPAP so I added that date and it was obvious before and after.

[discusdoc]

ACE inhibitors such as lisinopril can actually make your potassium levels increase. It is not uncommon to see patients on ACE inhibitors come in with potassium levels greater than 5.0 (normal range 3.5-5.0), and the first step in management is to lower ACE inhibitor dose or discontinue altogether. Diuretics such as hydrochlorothiazide and furosemide on the other hand can lower potassium levels (through increased kidney excretion of potassium) and may require a potassium supplement.

Beta blockers are actually the best class of medication to decrease the work the heart does.

[quote="Snoredog"]
Which medication used is a gamble but I would be trying something else. With Systolic so high I would want something like a A.C.E. inhibitor like Lisinopril or other that relaxes and dilates the blood vessel making it easier on the heart. That is why your heart is enlarged, clogged arteries and overworked heart. You might have to take a potassium supplement with it but that is no big deal, any multi-vitamin would have that.
quote]

[Snoredog]

Beta blockers are actually the best class of medication to decrease the work the heart does.

Ah yes Doc but Beta blockers are thought to decrease nocturnal melatonin release, perhaps partly accounting for sleep disturbance caused by some agents.

...since I'm a big fan of melatonin

[needingu]

Beanmescot:
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=36234&p=313204#p313204
I just read you thread of Nov 13 and realize I walked all over your thread..I'm sorry..I have read it in its entirety. Thanks for referring me to it. I encourage everyone to read it... Very educational...Yes, I have been told I have WCH..I carried my Relon blood pressure monitor to the Dr. office to have it checked in comparsion to his reading(they were exact). The report I kept at home was lower than in his office. When he told me he thought I had WCS I ask him,"Do you do home visits". He laughed and said ."You would die dead away if I showed up". I replied," I'm taking a xanax before coming in again. However my BP is now lower than it has ever been even at home readings. Thanks to cpap.

[RosemaryB]

My BP went down, too, after about a year on xpap. It's consistently been under 120/80 now. I weaned off my hydrochlorothiazide a few months back, since it was so low, and it's still low. The upper number was about 160 when I started on the HCTZ. The lower number was never that bad, just a bit elevated. So, it can happen. My bp was never as bad as many people's, but I'm very happy with this change.