Hello

[wdburke]

I have been lurking around this forum for a few weeks now trying to collect as much information as I can on sleep apnea. It wasn't until my sleep study that I began to realize just how much of an impact my sleep apnea was having on my general health. In the few weeks I am been visiting this site, I have picked up a signigificant amount of information. I am extremely impressed with the knowledge and geneosity of the forum members to share their knowledge and experience. I look forward to becoming an active participant here.

I have been very successful in my CPAP treatment so far. My AHI average to date is less than 10 and I am 100% compliant. My only issue is my mask leak rate which is 35 l/min above the normal venting expected from my mask at the prescribed pressure.

Bill

[j.a.taylor]

Bill,

Welcome! Glad to have you aboard.

This is a great place, full of tons of resources.

And a bunch of great people willing to help.

[cflame1]

is your mask not fitting right?

is it leaking somewhere that you can tell?

[Guest]

You want your AHI under 5, and you'll feel even better. That leak rate isn't bad considering they build them in (you'll never see a zero leak rate), but your AHI could be lower - have you considered a full face mask?

[Vettecraze]

Welcome Bill,
I was reading your post and noticed that your sleep study was done the same day as my sister's birthday, and, you started cpap treatment the same day as my birthday. Anyway cheers, and again welcome to the forum but I must warn you...
...you might become obsessed with this place, I know I did.
Take care,

Ernesto

[Hunter1]

Bill

Welcome to the board.

Wonderful people here. They are here to help. Ask all the questions you want.

Hunter1

[RosemaryB]

Welcome, Bill!

You have had great success with your original AHI being 104 with desats of up to 78%! Given where you started and the short length of time you have been doing this, you are doing very well with an AHI of 10 or less. However, the lower you can go, the better you will feel. An AHI of 5 or less is a good goal, since that's the cutoff point.

Have you read the posts of Dreamstalker? He started with an AHI about as high as yours and got it down to 0.0 many nights. Not everyone can do that, but I found it inspiring.

The first thing to do is to get rid of the leaks you are having. What have you tried so far? Since you have a full face mask, it's likely not mouth leaks, so it must be the mask.

Once you get your leaks under control, you can look at your computer print outs and see how they look. If your AHI is still higher than it could be, you may need to look at your titration level, since you have an auto. But the first thing is to get the leaks under control. If you post a message asking for help with your leaks with an UMFF mask, you may get some tips. You should also check under the yellow light bulb, particularly the "posts by Rested Gal" under the "help for new and struggling users heading"

Wonderful start!

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CPAPopedia Keywords Contained In This Post (Click For Definition): AHI

[bdp522]

Leak rates that high can skew the data, you may have a higher AHI than you think. You have to get the leaks under control. What pressures are you using? Does your xpap often hit the highest pressure? what was your titrated pressure? Have you tried any other masks? I know these are alot of questions, but the answers will help us help you.

Brenda

[wdburke]

Hi,

Thanks for all the great feeback. I am currently using a full face mask. It leaks in the plastic joint leading to the hose and around the edges. It doesn't seem to be a good fit for my face. The DME has sent a new (full face) mask that I will be trying tonight. I agree that the next step is to get rid of the leaks. I will be sure to read the forum entries on leaks that you referenced Rosemary. My goal is an AHI of 0.

Thanks,

Bill