New user trying to figure this thing out.

I just got my cpap system one?-- 2 days ago and I have looked at the info on the machine in the mornings (although i have only sucessfully kept it on for 4hrs each night) and it says major leak 28% and the AHI the first night was 2.8 and the second night 2.1. I started with 14cm the first night but that was too much for me to take so I adjusted it to 10cm.

Basically the question is should I worry about the leak?

jasonb113 wrote:major leak 28%

It depends on how long the leak lasted. 8 minutes? 8 hours?

It's best to use SleepyHead software to see exactly what is going on - viewtopic/t88983/Pugsys-PointersSleepyH ... Hints.html

So much to learn.

Hi Jason,

Yes - I'm a week into this and also feeling overwhelmed! Very grateful that my doctor called yesterday and asked me what questions I had. We'll figure it out!

Jon

ChicagoGranny wrote:

jasonb113 wrote:major leak 28%

It depends on how long the leak lasted. 8 minutes? 8 hours?

It's best to use SleepyHead software to see exactly what is going on - viewtopic/t88983/Pugsys-PointersSleepyH ... Hints.html

On a System One's LCD, the Large Leak percentage is the percentage of time spent in Large Leak territory. So we can determine how much time Jasonb113 is spending in Large Leak territory without the full SleepyHead data.

Jasonb113,

You say that you used the machine about 4 hours. With a large leak percentage of 28%, that means that 28% of 4 hours was spent in Large Leak territory. And 28% of 4 hours is computed as follows:

• 0.28 * 4 hours = 1.12 hours = 1 hour and 7.2 minutes

What we don't know is whether the Large Leak time was due to one massive one hour long leak or whether it was made up of numerous shorter Large Leaks where the total time adds together to equal 1 hour and 7 minutes. We also don't know how long the leaks were just below the Large Leak territory.

Is this too much time to spend in Large Leak territory? In my opinion the answer it is YES. Large leaks can adversely affect the quality of the CPAP therapy in terms of preventing apneas. They can also affect the accuracy of the recorded AHI data---when the leaks are sufficiently large and long, the machine can lose track of your breathing and when that happens, it can fail to detect apneas and hypopneas that are occurring. Finally long periods of time spent in Large Leak territory can also adversely affect the subjective quality of the sleep itself. The large leaks may be part of why you're having difficulty keeping the mask on for more than 4 hours.

As for what might be triggering the excess amount of Large Leaks: What kind of a mask are you using? And do you have a history of mouth breathing?

And as ChicagoGranny says, the best way to really get a handle on what's going on when you're sleeping (or trying to sleep) with the mask on is to download your data into SleepyHead. In SleepyHead you will be able to see exactly how bad those Large Leaks are and when they're happening.

But the short answer remains: 28% of the time spent in Large Leak territory is too much time spent in Large Leak territory.

Thank you for the informative reply. The DME gave me one mask that didnt have a piece that went over the forhead (not sure model). The one i have used these 2 days is a philips Amara? nose and mouth mask.

I am a very big mouth breather and active sleeper. I always wind up on my side with my face down into my shoulder.

I will try the other mask the DME gave me just to see if any difference.

Two bits of unsolicited advice: if you're a big mouth breather, at least consider the "partial taping" system that is described elsewhere on the site. It's not for everyone, but I am very partial to it and have found that it helps prevent leaks that wake me up that occur when my face changes shape as I relax and the mouth inevitably opens or the jaw drops; helps prevent drymouth, etc.

Good luck!