My Dr said I could do a HOME SLEEP STUDY

General Discussion on any topic relating to CPAP and/or Sleep Apnea.
.mike
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My Dr said I could do a HOME SLEEP STUDY

Post by .mike » Mon Jul 06, 2015 6:20 pm

I thought that would be a great idea. I expected that someone would provide me with a cpap machine and and something to put on my finger. What I got was a chest strap, a finger thing, and prong hoses to lay in your nose. Nothing like a cpap mask. I can't sleep without my mask and this was not going to provide me any pressure. So I called Instant Diagnostic Systems, (the test provider) and they said they don't do studies for cpap users. So my dr didn't know, and the setup phone call didn't ask, and the tech support escalated the call twice, and took my phone number. When they called back they told me to return the stuff.

Enclosed is a pic of what I got.Image

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Janknitz
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Re: My Dr said I could do a HOME SLEEP STUDY

Post by Janknitz » Mon Jul 06, 2015 6:31 pm

I know it may be hard to sleep without CPAP for one night, but whether you were in a lab or at home that would be necessary to test the degree of sleep apnea you have UNTREATED. Your sleep apnea with CPAP should be very low or zero, there's no sense in testing that.

You should try to sleep--I know it will be difficult, but otherwise the data isn't useful.

This is NOT the same as a titration, where the machine measures and adjusts your treated AHI to determine the best settings. That can be easily done on an auto-adjustable machine, but that's different than testing the degree of sleep apnea.
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kaiasgram
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Re: My Dr said I could do a HOME SLEEP STUDY

Post by kaiasgram » Mon Jul 06, 2015 6:40 pm

.mike, can you elaborate -- What was the purpose of the home sleep study? Documentation for insurance? Checking on the status of your untreated apnea? Other?

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.mike
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Re: My Dr said I could do a HOME SLEEP STUDY

Post by .mike » Mon Jul 06, 2015 7:49 pm

kaiasgram wrote:.mike, can you elaborate -- What was the purpose of the home sleep study? Documentation for insurance? Checking on the status of your untreated apnea? Other?
I asked for a script for insurance. I have been on a machine for many years. I have been using machines from Craigslist and thought I could get a nice new machine.

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yaconsult
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Re: My Dr said I could do a HOME SLEEP STUDY

Post by yaconsult » Mon Jul 06, 2015 8:03 pm

I think your best bet would be to try to convince your doctor to request a sleep lab split study. I was in the same boat - successfully on cpap for many years, but needing to justify things for the insurance since the last sleep study was many years ago.

In the split study, you still have to suffer for some hours to provide the data and confirm the diagnosis. But then they can mask you up and treat you for the rest of the night. I went through this torture in January and my AHI was 80.

I have no experience with the home study. How long do they need you to use it if you are unable to sleep without cpap? If you struggled with it for a couple of hours would that give them the data they need?

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kaiasgram
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Re: My Dr said I could do a HOME SLEEP STUDY

Post by kaiasgram » Mon Jul 06, 2015 8:26 pm

.mike wrote:
kaiasgram wrote:.mike, can you elaborate -- What was the purpose of the home sleep study? Documentation for insurance? Checking on the status of your untreated apnea? Other?
I asked for a script for insurance. I have been on a machine for many years. I have been using machines from Craigslist and thought I could get a nice new machine.
OK. So they do need your untreated AHI. So there's really no way around spending at least some of the night sleeping without the machine. An in-lab split night study would shorten the amount of time you'd have to spend off the machine but depending on your insurance would cost a lot more than a home study. Maybe you could find out what is the minimum number of hours of sleep that would constitute a valid home test, and just sleep off the machine for the minimum required number of hours, then get back on your machine.

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Re: My Dr said I could do a HOME SLEEP STUDY

Post by library lady » Mon Jul 06, 2015 8:40 pm

You could at least try to sleep without it. I know you feel that you can't sleep without the mask, I've been in the same boat. In May I took a plane trip to Oregon from Minneapolis, taking an airport shuttle to and from my home in SE Minnesota. Arriving back home at midnight, I discovered that I had left my cpap bag on the shuttle. At that hour, I had no way to go back and retrieve it, so I went to bed without it. Amazingly, I slept quite well. I called them in the morning and they had found it. I drove to their office and picked it up. Lessons learned: I CAN sleep without it if necessary, and I need to find a way to keep myself from forgetting it, though that's the only time I happened to forget..

If you need a recertification for insurance in order to get a new machine, you have no choice but to go through a sleep study unless you are prepared to pay for it all on your dime. The suggestion to try to get a split study is the best choice, 2nd best is to get that equipment back and do the home study after you find out the minimum of hours of time you need to do it.

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.mike
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Re: My Dr said I could do a HOME SLEEP STUDY

Post by .mike » Tue Jul 07, 2015 6:32 am

library lady wrote:You could at least try to sleep without it. I know you feel that you can't sleep without the mask
After thinking about it a while, I decided to try. I went to bed at 9:30 and gave up the test at 2:00. It felt like I would just fall asleap and then wake out of breath, about every 15 minutes. I did copy the data before I sent the machine back, does anyone know how to read ApneaLink files?

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purple
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Re: My Dr said I could do a HOME SLEEP STUDY

Post by purple » Tue Jul 07, 2015 8:57 am

I did a study in an overnight lab where they wanted me to sleep for four hours without pressure. I had severe chest pain. I should have taken the lab techs offer to call me an ambulance to take me to the ER for cardiac problems. This, "Verifying the need for Sleep Apnea equipment" is dumbass policy created by some insurance book keeper who thinks it will save his company money, with big risks to those of us who already use equipment.

tiredandscared
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Re: My Dr said I could do a HOME SLEEP STUDY

Post by tiredandscared » Tue Jul 07, 2015 10:04 am

You have to do the diagnostic either that or change the healthcare provider. If you decide to do it. Make sure you do it in your regular sleeping position, and take some low-level light sleep medication, like melatonin or a sedative that doesn't cause muscle relaxation. Sleep studies are probably the most uncomfortable and cumbersome things to do in SDB investigation.

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Re: My Dr said I could do a HOME SLEEP STUDY

Post by Krelvin » Tue Jul 07, 2015 10:58 am

The only reason why I had to do a new sleep study back in Aug was because I didn't have a full copy of the original one (I only had the one that I had redacted my personal information). The sleep lab that did that study 9 years ago was no longer in business and there was not way to show it was for me. This was to get a new replacement machine.

It was hard since I always use my CPAP when I sleep and this was a 3 hour period of trying to sleep without it for the first time in almost 9 years. The second part was okay except for the power failure in the building about 30 mins into that part of the study, but I got through it.

The first study 9yrs ago wasn't really that big of a deal. I had never used CPAP before and the first part was like sleeping normally except with a bunch of wires. After a couple false starts with the mask in the second part, I slept more than 3 hours straight which was not a normal occurrence for me at the time. So really not a pain other than doing it.

As far as medical tests go, I can think of some what were a lot more painful and obtrusive over the years than this. For something I use every night... it is worth it.

BTW cleaning my office out in Jan I found the original un-redacted study...
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Janknitz
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Re: My Dr said I could do a HOME SLEEP STUDY

Post by Janknitz » Tue Jul 07, 2015 11:34 am

Really, truly, we ALL lived for years (decades in my case) with sleep apnea--some of us quite severe--before we started to use CPAP. You will not die from ONE night without it.

If you want insurance to pay for equipment, you've got to jump through insurance hoops--they are all about numbers and documentation, because you know, CPAP's are the "in" thing and if they didn't do this then EVERYONE would want one, just for the street cred.

Your choice is simple, suck it up or keep paying out of pocket. Up to you.
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Hang Fire
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Re: My Dr said I could do a HOME SLEEP STUDY

Post by Hang Fire » Tue Jul 07, 2015 3:33 pm

.mike wrote:my dr didn't know
I believe he doesn't know.

I haven't had a sleep study in over ten years and I will not submit to one.

Once per year my sleep doc writes a letter to my insurance company enclosing a copy of my compliance report from my machine and he tells them CPAP is still required.

If I need a script to buy a machine, he just writes it.
.mike wrote:I asked for a script for insurance. I have been on a machine for many years.
He should just write the script and forget the study. My GP, who has never seen my machine or consulted with me on CPAP, would write one if I needed it.

Screw sleeping without CPAP for any reason.

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Re: My Dr said I could do a HOME SLEEP STUDY

Post by yaconsult » Tue Jul 07, 2015 7:50 pm

.mike wrote:
library lady wrote:You could at least try to sleep without it. I know you feel that you can't sleep without the mask
After thinking about it a while, I decided to try. I went to bed at 9:30 and gave up the test at 2:00. It felt like I would just fall asleap and then wake out of breath, about every 15 minutes. I did copy the data before I sent the machine back, does anyone know how to read ApneaLink files?
Good job! That should provide them with all the data they need. I think you chose the best of your available options. Sleeping without cpap is torture for those of us with severe apnea. Those who have it know what I mean. How can I possibly sleep when I'm having, on average, 80 apnea events per hour?

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ChicagoGranny
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Re: My Dr said I could do a HOME SLEEP STUDY

Post by ChicagoGranny » Wed Jul 08, 2015 6:13 am

yaconsult wrote:I think you chose the best of your available options.
Disagree.

The best option would have been to print out a 12-month compliance report, give the report to the doctor and tell him to send the report to the insurance company and write you a prescription for CPAP.

Sounds like this doctor has little to no experience dealing with sleep apnea and CPAP.