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I use a Intellipap CPAP and my AHI index has come down from 58 to 4 in 8 weeks of therapy, but my data shows exhale puff index constantly
as 31/hr. Can u help me how to control this? and what are the implications of this index?

Leaving alone this portion life quality has changed dramatically for the better and would never like to leave CPAP therapy

Hey Dazed, welcome!

The EPI tells you that you may be mouth breathing. That's not so good cos it means you may be losing therapy air through your mouth.

But before we make that assumption we need to know what mask you are using. Can you fill in your equipment details (preferably in text) in the control panel (under the search block). Then we can offer better suggestions!

I would like an opinion as to the cause of excessive exhale puffs too. I use nasal pillows, tape my mouth, use a chin strap and still record a lot of exhale puffs some nights. I use the IntelliPap also.

Wow... that a high number. My EPI is always below 1...usually 0.0 - 0.5. I'd say you definitely have some mouth leaks going on. Please go to the User Control Panel and choose Profile and then Edit Equipment and then choose your gear from the pull down menus. Choose to show them in TEXT. This way we can all see what you are using every time you post.

Once we know what mask you use, those with the same mask can offer the best advice on how to tweak things to stop the leaks.

Maybe 'chipmonk-cheeks' are shown as exhale puffs....DeVilbiss?

updated my profile

Ok, you have nasal pillows.
Do you experience dry mouth during the night or in the morning when you wake?
What are your leak results?

Yes, those are puff's that are coming out of your mouth. You might want to try to a full face mask.

What would cause an Exhale Puff Index number with a full-face mask? Mine aren't as high as what was listed above, so I feel better about it now, but I just started my CPAP therapy over this past weekend, and I'm seeing it listed as around 5 or 6 per hour every night.

I have found that so far, every night I have woken up after about 3 or 4 hours, at which point I take off my mask, go to the bathroom, then get back in bed. I find if I don't get up and move around, even if only for a minute or two, I cannot get comfortable. I do have auto-off set on mine, and I just take the mask off and let it shut itself off. Could this be causing these numbers? Due to the size of my bedside table, I had to basically put the machine out of reach from my bed so that my alarm clock and cell phone are within reach (I need my phone close by so I can answer work calls when I am on-call).

Also, as I said, I have only been using my CPAP for 4 nights now, so I am still trying to get used to it, so I may be worrying about nothing.