Spontaneous Arousals

My last sleep study showed effective control of my apnea under CPAP, with an AHI of ~1. There were, however, many brief arousals throughout the night that didn't have any coinciding apneas or hypopneas to explain them. I called and asked the doctor to review these arousals, and he couldn't tell if they were apnea related. Should I suspect UARS? Or could it be something like stress causing these regular, brief awakenings throughout the night?

Post Sleepyhead results which will show the arousals in a way they can be diagnosed here... without that, it's a guessing game.

Are you new to using a CPAP machine? If so, it may take a few nights for your brain to get used to that alien thing sitting on your face every night. It is normal to have some awakenings every night. We normally awaken briefly after REM sleep. Several things can cause arousals in addition to apneas. As long as you are able to get back to sleep easily, I wouldn't worry too much about them.

Okie bipap wrote: ↑

Sat Mar 17, 2018 5:43 pm

Are you new to using a CPAP machine? If so, it may take a few nights for your brain to get used to that alien thing sitting on your face every night. It is normal to have some awakenings every night. We normally awaken briefly after REM sleep. Several things can cause arousals in addition to apneas. As long as you are able to get back to sleep easily, I wouldn't worry too much about them.

It's a problem because I've been on CPAP for two months and these arousals are the only thing I have to go on to explain why I feel no better

DankShroud wrote: ↑

Sat Mar 17, 2018 6:16 pm

Okie bipap wrote: ↑

Sat Mar 17, 2018 5:43 pm

Are you new to using a CPAP machine? If so, it may take a few nights for your brain to get used to that alien thing sitting on your face every night. It is normal to have some awakenings every night. We normally awaken briefly after REM sleep. Several things can cause arousals in addition to apneas. As long as you are able to get back to sleep easily, I wouldn't worry too much about them.

It's a problem because I've been on CPAP for two months and these arousals are the only thing I have to go on to explain why I feel no better

Do you see frequent arousals when viewing your data using sleepyhead?

Begging to differ from the above, Non-respiratory related arousals cannot be determined with sleepyhead and are often described as spontaneous. The causes are difficult to find, and often are described as idiopathic, meaning the cause is not known. The best way to tell if an event may be respiratory is to quickly turn your xPAP off and on whenever you wake, then look for clues in sleepyhead. But if your sleep study showed good control of Apneas, and little of no RERA, then its likely not a respiration-related wakening.

TASmart wrote: ↑

Sat Mar 17, 2018 6:43 pm

Begging to differ from the above, Non-respiratory related arousals cannot be determined with sleepyhead and are often described as spontaneous. The causes are difficult to find, and often are described as idiopathic, meaning the cause is not known. The best way to tell if an event may be respiratory is to quickly turn your xPAP off and on whenever you wake, then look for clues in sleepyhead. But if your sleep study showed good control of Apneas, and little of no RERA, then its likely not a respiration-related wakening.

The OP is searching for a reason why he/she doesn't feel better despite having a low AHI with CPAP. He/she stated that the sleep study with CPAP showed that the OSA was well controlled but noted a number of arousals. Based on my own experience, I can't imagine not having a number of arousals during a sleep study. I have plenty when I sleep in a hotel. The doctor doesn't seem to provide any insight.
So the question I am asking is are there a large number of arousals seen when looking at sleephead? I know what my flow rate wave form looks like when I am awake, and when I am sound asleep. Scroll through and look for disruption.

My understanding of UARS is that pressure is the treatment. So try higher pressure.

Can stress in itself cause you to wake up tired?

DankShroud wrote: ↑

Sat Mar 17, 2018 8:48 pm

Can stress in itself cause you to wake up tired?

Stress can cause you to sleep poorly.
When I have a morning flight I sleep terribly worrying I will oversleep; looking at the clock every chance I get.
Stress at work can cause me to wakeup frequently; sometimes I quickly fall back to sleep - other times I can't get back to sleep for an hour.

Since you have a device that monitors every breath and it is easy to recognize what your breathing looks like when you are not soundly asleep, review your data and see if your sleep looks bad.
If your sleep looks sound but you feel unrested, search for solutions elsewhere.