great AHI but persistent snoring

[wolewyck]

Hi folks. I'm a long-time user of an ASV machine yet still have persistent snoring. The machine tells me my AHI is great (usually <1). I wear a chin-strap and nasal pillows. Cannot tolerate a full-face mask-- my facial structure seems to make them leak immediately if I shift at all. The machine (and my experiene/husband's experience) does not suggest significant mask leakage for the nasal pillows.

And I still snore. I don't understand how, if the therapy is supposedly resolving virtually all my events, snoring is possible. And I certainly don't know what can be done about it. My sleep doctor (a neurologist) basically shrugs and says I should see an ENT, which I can and will do, but I rather suspect that the only thing an ENT can do is surgery, which doesn't seem great.

Hoping that some folks in this crowd might have gone through this and have ideas.

[Julie]

Do see an ENT and at least see what they think... then come here with results and see what we think.

[palerider]

And I still snore. I don't understand how, if the therapy is supposedly resolving virtually all my events, snoring is possible. And I certainly don't know what can be done about it

If you're snoring, your pressure is too low.

[kbh209]

And I still snore. I don't understand how, if the therapy is supposedly resolving virtually all my events, snoring is possible. And I certainly don't know what can be done about it

If you're snoring, your pressure is too low.

Interesting, my sleep specialist said that as long as the AHI is good, then you don't need to worry about the snoring with the mask on. The only issue the snoring caused, was my roommate would smack me with a pillow if it got loud.

[palerider]

And I still snore. I don't understand how, if the therapy is supposedly resolving virtually all my events, snoring is possible. And I certainly don't know what can be done about it

If you're snoring, your pressure is too low.

Interesting, my sleep specialist said that as long as the AHI is good, then you don't need to worry about the snoring with the mask on. The only issue the snoring caused, was my roommate would smack me with a pillow if it got loud.

Sleep specialists like that are the reason most of us are here... heh.

If you had an auto machine, it would increase pressure when it detected snoring, in an effort to eliminate it.

Snoring is a result of a narrowed airway, which increases the effort to breathe, reducing your rest. Snoring has been shown to be detrimental to health, not just from being smacked with a pillow.

[ChicagoGranny]

Interesting, my sleep specialist said that as long as the AHI is good, then you don't need to worry about the snoring with the mask on.

The state of the sleep industry is sad.

The vibrations from snoring cause neuronal dysfunction affecting the airway muscles. In other words, over time, snoring will cause sleep-disordered breathing to worsen.

( https://www.atsjournals.org/doi/full/10 ... 2.2105010c )

It would be nice, on your next visit with the "sleep specialist", to say, "You know, I turned my pressure up a bit, and the dangerous snoring is gone - treated by CPAP."

If you are going to use CPAP to treat sleep apnea, you might as well get the full benefit by treating your snoring.

[katestyles]

And I still snore. I don't understand how, if the therapy is supposedly resolving virtually all my events, snoring is possible. And I certainly don't know what can be done about it

If you're snoring, your pressure is too low.

Interesting, my sleep specialist said that as long as the AHI is good, then you don't need to worry about the snoring with the mask on. The only issue the snoring caused, was my roommate would smack me with a pillow if it got loud.

Sleep specialists like that are the reason most of us are here... heh.

If you had an auto machine, it would increase pressure when it detected snoring, in an effort to eliminate it.

Snoring is a result of a narrowed airway, which increases the effort to breathe, reducing your rest. Snoring has been shown to be detrimental to health, not just from being smacked with a pillow.

I wish my specialist believed this. (Sad face emoticon substitute)

[kbh209]

Interesting, my sleep specialist said that as long as the AHI is good, then you don't need to worry about the snoring with the mask on.

The state of the sleep industry is sad.

The vibrations from snoring cause neuronal dysfunction affecting the airway muscles. In other words, over time, snoring will cause sleep-disordered breathing to worsen.

( https://www.atsjournals.org/doi/full/10 ... 2.2105010c )

It would be nice, on your next visit with the "sleep specialist", to say, "You know, I turned my pressure up a bit, and the dangerous snoring is gone - treated by CPAP."

If you are going to use CPAP to treat sleep apnea, you might as well get the full benefit by treating your snoring.

Yeah now that I know why SleepyHead/Oscar and APAP machines work hand in hand, to help better the sleep apnea, I'm looking forward to 2020, when I can get a an APAP. Right now I have a brick that was given to me until then.

[ChicagoGranny]

SleepyHead/Oscar and APAP machines work hand in hand, to help better the sleep apnea

Well said.

I have a brick

You can still turn the pressure up 1.0 cm and see how it works for you.

[danis]

My sleep study suggested that they observed zero events all night at constant pressure of 10 and snoring.
From feedback on this forum I started my therapy at 8-12 auto and my pressure was 11.5 average all night with no snoring and 1.3 events an hour .
So sleep study/sleep specialists probably need some training from folks on this forum.

[ChicagoGranny]

So sleep study/sleep specialists probably need some training from folks on this forum.

But, the specialists are experts.

[ChicagoGranny]

Definition of "expert": Someone who refuses to learn anymore.

[palerider]

So sleep study/sleep specialists probably need some training from folks on this forum.

One thing that escapes many of them is that sleep isn't a constant. It varies, from hour to hour, and night to night .. we all have good night's and bad nights... So when your sleep study says "you slept great for a whole hour and a half"... That really doesn't mean much at all.