My sleep study results from about 3 hours of sleep

Sorry if this post is useless if no one wants to read haha. Posted this in my previous thread about how I was worried I would get called and told that I'm just tired cause I'm a lazy bum or that I didn't sleep enough and would have to do my study again! Luckily neither. They classified me as "severe" but I've seen on other sources that severe is considered >50 events but perhaps it's due to other factors as a whole?

Here's what they said:
"AHI was moderately elevated at 33 events/hr. Of the total 104 apneas and hypopneas, 101 were obstructive, 0 were mixed, and 3 were central in origin. Respiratory disturbance index (RDI) was severely elevated at 46 events/hr. Oxygen desaturation nadir was 84% with a mean saturation while sleeping of 94%.

As reported above the patient's nocturnal polysomnogram is notable for a significantly diminished sleep efficiency of 38%. This is likely a first-time affect of sleep testing. That said, she demonstrated evidence of severe OSA with an AHI of 33 events per hour accompanied by severe oxygen desaturations. She therefore warrants CPAP therapy."

Is it usual to have a tiny dash of central events among mostly obstructive? Those 3 are so random. I was initially ordered a split study but not make it to CPAP during the test since I had so much trouble falling asleep- but they have ordered APAP for me without needing a titration study. (Lucky me?)

This might be a stupid question- I had 33 events/hr for those few hours I slept- do events get more frequent after more sleep into the night due to more varied cycle lengths? Just wondering if my events per hour would have varied more if I had more hours of data. Just a random curiosity question.

I'll be getting a call from the DME affiliated with the sleep center (not sure if this is a bad idea instead of looking at other DMEs) but I did inquire by phone to one of the RTs about their APAP options- and they do indeed carry and most recommend the Respironics Dreamstation and the Resmed Airsense 10 luckily. Not sure if they carry the "For Her" model - I asked about it and the RT said they don't usually find reason to choose that over the standard since the standard works so well- so I'm not sure if that means they DON'T carry it or if he was just saying he finds it unnecessary.

Anyhow long story short, I'm relieved I didn't have to re-do my sleep study and I can't wait to start sleeping and feeling better. I'm grateful to figure this out relatively early (28 yrs old).

Thanks in advance for any input! This was mostly just a rambling cause I felt like sharing!

I'm glad you are going to be getting some help! Keep us posted when you get started and let us know how it's going. Good luck!

palindrome17 wrote:Is it usual to have a tiny dash of central events among mostly obstructive? Those 3 are so random.

Very common to have a few centrals here and there. Sleep onset centrals or maybe a regular central all by its lonesome in the middle of the night. Centrals are only a problem if they are numerous enough to cause sleep problems or drops in oxygen.
3...or even a few more...not a big deal and nothing to worry about.

palindrome17 wrote: Just wondering if my events per hour would have varied more if I had more hours of data. Just a random curiosity question.

Unknown and maybe or maybe not. Might be higher if your OSA is worse in REM and you didn't get much, if any, REM during the sleep study.

I don't know where you saw greater than 50 as being where severe starts...if that is what you are saying.

This is the usual standard category classification criteria. What they don't take into account might be arousals and desats...this category stuff only relates to the AHI. A person could have AHI of 12...but have desats to 75%...so technically mild going by the AHI but rather severe if you factor in the Oxygen levels but right now there is no standards for anything but AHI or maybe RDI (RDI does factor in arousals).

http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/sl ... c-overview

Mild apnea. Mild apnea is defined as 5 to 14 episodes of apnea or reduced airflow to the lungs every hour. Symptoms may include drowsiness or falling asleep during activities that do not require much attention, such as watching television or reading. These symptoms may cause only minor problems at work or while spending time with friends or family.
Moderate apnea. Moderate apnea is defined as 15 to 29 episodes of apnea or reduced airflow to the lungs every hour. Symptoms may include drowsiness or falling asleep during activities that require some attention, such as attending a concert or a meeting. These symptoms may cause moderate problems with work or social functioning.
Severe apnea. Severe apnea is defined as 30 or more episodes of apnea or reduced airflow to the lungs every hour. Symptoms may include drowsiness or falling asleep during activities that require active attention, such as eating, talking, driving, or walking. These symptoms may cause severe problems with work or social functioning.

Thanks Rainmom for the encouragement!

And thanks again Pugsy for your input and clarification on the classifications. I went into this never expecting to have severe OSA. The doctor predicted moderate (again, no snoring!) all the reason why I'm more excited for the changes to come. I'm thankful for this forum for preparing me for the reality that it won't be an overnight fix of course.

A central apnea just means that you didn't take a breath for more than 10 seconds...you could have been changing your position or any number of other normal things that can cause you to not take a breath for more than 10 seconds.

For me, no centrals during my 3 hour sleep study. Now that I'm using cpap, I nearly always have a few centrals showing up in my sleep data. Very, very seldom an AHI of 0, because of a central or two or three each night *smile*. Not a lot, just a few a night, so I don't worry about them. My sleep doctor agrees, the centrals that I see aren't significant. Yours sound similar, not significant.