I've been suffering from sleep apnea and snoring for most of my life and tonight will be my first night with an XPAP. Thanks to all for the very informative posts and "tricks" of the trade. I ran the leak test program with the S8 set on Auto 4-10 (test run at 10) and found that I will need to use the large pillows and the above the bridge of the nose panty hose trick. Still lots to learn but I'm excited at the prospect of sleeping without the constant trashing around during the night. Keeping my fingers crossed to see if the snoring and apnea are controlled.
I know that there is a learning curve but I'm thinking/hoping that the posts on this forum will greatly shorten that curve.
Thank You!
Finally... S8 Vantage Auto & Aura arrived today...
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rested gal
- Posts: 12881
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Guest
Learning...
My first night's results are a mixed bag...
Leak .64 L/S
AI 4.3
HI 6.8
AHI 11.1
Pressure 10
I raised the high pressure setting from 10 to 14 this morning and the low setting from 4 to 6 and that should help. It will be interesting to see what my "new" pressure reading is tonight.
I still need to fiddle with the Aura as it was a bit too tight... I feel confident that I can come up with the right adjustments (with panty hose modification) to get a better leak number.
I slept fairly well last night but my wife said that I was still pretty twitchy during the night. I've always felt that I've slept pretty well and have only just started to feel that I wasn't getting enough sleep within the last couple of years. The thrashing during the night is a fairly new thing.
I'm looking forward to getting the equipment settings lined out so that some of the symptoms are reduced.
Leak .64 L/S
AI 4.3
HI 6.8
AHI 11.1
Pressure 10
I raised the high pressure setting from 10 to 14 this morning and the low setting from 4 to 6 and that should help. It will be interesting to see what my "new" pressure reading is tonight.
I still need to fiddle with the Aura as it was a bit too tight... I feel confident that I can come up with the right adjustments (with panty hose modification) to get a better leak number.
I slept fairly well last night but my wife said that I was still pretty twitchy during the night. I've always felt that I've slept pretty well and have only just started to feel that I wasn't getting enough sleep within the last couple of years. The thrashing during the night is a fairly new thing.
I'm looking forward to getting the equipment settings lined out so that some of the symptoms are reduced.
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john57b
John57b,
Thanks... I felt that I was getting too much leakage and suspect that I'll be fiddling with the adjustments for a bit to get the leak number below .4 L/S. That in turn should improve my results. Once I get that under control, I'll feel more confident about nightly AHI, AI, and HI nightly results.
Charle
Thanks... I felt that I was getting too much leakage and suspect that I'll be fiddling with the adjustments for a bit to get the leak number below .4 L/S. That in turn should improve my results. Once I get that under control, I'll feel more confident about nightly AHI, AI, and HI nightly results.
Charle
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Sleepless on LI
- Posts: 3997
- Joined: Mon May 30, 2005 6:46 pm
- Location: Long Island, New York
Charle,
You can find the vent flow rate chart for the Aura, if you don't have your booklet handy, under the CPAP FAQ section. It will tell you the acceptable/expected rates at different pressures. Something, too, to keep in mind if your leak rate doesn't go down would be the possibility of mouth breathing with a nasal pillow interface. NOT that you're doing that, but just something to keep in the back of your mind in case you've stopped any leaks you can with the Aura and still don't have a good rate.
Best of luck. Keep us all posted, please.
You can find the vent flow rate chart for the Aura, if you don't have your booklet handy, under the CPAP FAQ section. It will tell you the acceptable/expected rates at different pressures. Something, too, to keep in mind if your leak rate doesn't go down would be the possibility of mouth breathing with a nasal pillow interface. NOT that you're doing that, but just something to keep in the back of your mind in case you've stopped any leaks you can with the Aura and still don't have a good rate.
Best of luck. Keep us all posted, please.
L o R i
Thanks LoRi,
My wife says that I don't mouth breath but with the S8 connected, that may change. I may very well be venting due to the pressure. I'll be on the lookout for that.
I suspect that I overtightened the Aura last night... I've read your posts on this interface and recognize that it may take a bit of work before I get it solved. I've looked at the AEIOMed vent flow rate curve but also read from a previous post that the S8 subtracts that vent rate from the total to arrive at the leak rate. Is that correct?
It is nice to have folks that have already been down this road to be able to get advice from.
Regards,
Charle
My wife says that I don't mouth breath but with the S8 connected, that may change. I may very well be venting due to the pressure. I'll be on the lookout for that.
I suspect that I overtightened the Aura last night... I've read your posts on this interface and recognize that it may take a bit of work before I get it solved. I've looked at the AEIOMed vent flow rate curve but also read from a previous post that the S8 subtracts that vent rate from the total to arrive at the leak rate. Is that correct?
It is nice to have folks that have already been down this road to be able to get advice from.
Regards,
Charle
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Sleepless on LI
- Posts: 3997
- Joined: Mon May 30, 2005 6:46 pm
- Location: Long Island, New York
Charle,
I wish I could give you the answer about the S8 subtracting that figure. I have no idea on that.
Yes, it does take some tweaking, as it usually does with every mask, until you'll get it right. But if it's too tight, that's a good sign as most people complain they make this headgear too large. So you're already in a better place than a lot of people who order the Aura can be.
Best of luck and improved sleep.
I wish I could give you the answer about the S8 subtracting that figure. I have no idea on that.
Yes, it does take some tweaking, as it usually does with every mask, until you'll get it right. But if it's too tight, that's a good sign as most people complain they make this headgear too large. So you're already in a better place than a lot of people who order the Aura can be.
Best of luck and improved sleep.
L o R i
Now I'm mouth breathing...
My second night with the S8 and Aura was quite an experience. I woke several times during the night because I was venting the pressure through my mouth. I also remembered my dreams which I believe means that I wasn't sleeping deeply (got this from a post I found in FAQs). My AHI was 14.2, AI 5.7, and pressure 11.8 with a leak rate of .48L/s.
I believe that I've solved the leakage at the nares (solved by using a headband across the Aura just below the bridge of the nose). I'm now thinking that the higher leak rate is due to the mouth venting???
Lori, I remember you mentioning that I might need to tape my mouth and I remember reading about a particular tape that was recommended. I've looked for that post but haven't found it yet... I'll keep looking but if someone has it in mind, I'd appreciate a lead.
Thanks,
Charle
I believe that I've solved the leakage at the nares (solved by using a headband across the Aura just below the bridge of the nose). I'm now thinking that the higher leak rate is due to the mouth venting???
Lori, I remember you mentioning that I might need to tape my mouth and I remember reading about a particular tape that was recommended. I've looked for that post but haven't found it yet... I'll keep looking but if someone has it in mind, I'd appreciate a lead.
Thanks,
Charle
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Sleepless on LI
- Posts: 3997
- Joined: Mon May 30, 2005 6:46 pm
- Location: Long Island, New York
Charle,
If I'm not mistaken your leak rate is not that bad. Your machine measures it in LPS (liters per second), not LPM (liters per minute). The vent flow rate chart measures by LPMs, so I hope you are aware of that. You are not at
a leak rate of 48 LPMs, but .48 LPS.
Now, not being the best mathematician, if you multiply the .48 x 60 (for 60 seconds in a minute, it comes out to a leak rate of 28.8 LPM. If you look at the chart for what your expected VFR should be at 10 cms, it is about 24. Are you saying this because the machine you uses calculates out the anticipated exhaust port rate in the equation? Then maybe it's a bit high. I just don't know how much they are attribuiting to the exhaust port since the charts do take that into consideration.
If you want to try what I think you're talking about, it's Tegaderm patches, which are sold in drug stores in the bandage dept. They are a bit more costly than tape, but I am of the belief, if it makes you more compliant and your therapy more beneficial, it's worth whatever extra you have to spend. I buy the large ones because you can cut them in half and get two out of each. If you buy the small ones, personally, for my shape mouth, I had to cut another one in half and use the two halves to reinforce the sides since the small patch just makes it past the corners of my mouth.
In any event, I find these are easier to peel off in the morning and NEVER pop the seal. They are what they will use in the hospital over an IV site to visualize it and make them easier to pull of than gauze attached by a strip of tape. And with tape, you need more than one strip and it becomes an involved process, IMHO.
Good luck. Don't give up. The therapy takes some tweaking but it will get better.
If I'm not mistaken your leak rate is not that bad. Your machine measures it in LPS (liters per second), not LPM (liters per minute). The vent flow rate chart measures by LPMs, so I hope you are aware of that. You are not at
a leak rate of 48 LPMs, but .48 LPS.
Now, not being the best mathematician, if you multiply the .48 x 60 (for 60 seconds in a minute, it comes out to a leak rate of 28.8 LPM. If you look at the chart for what your expected VFR should be at 10 cms, it is about 24. Are you saying this because the machine you uses calculates out the anticipated exhaust port rate in the equation? Then maybe it's a bit high. I just don't know how much they are attribuiting to the exhaust port since the charts do take that into consideration.
If you want to try what I think you're talking about, it's Tegaderm patches, which are sold in drug stores in the bandage dept. They are a bit more costly than tape, but I am of the belief, if it makes you more compliant and your therapy more beneficial, it's worth whatever extra you have to spend. I buy the large ones because you can cut them in half and get two out of each. If you buy the small ones, personally, for my shape mouth, I had to cut another one in half and use the two halves to reinforce the sides since the small patch just makes it past the corners of my mouth.
In any event, I find these are easier to peel off in the morning and NEVER pop the seal. They are what they will use in the hospital over an IV site to visualize it and make them easier to pull of than gauze attached by a strip of tape. And with tape, you need more than one strip and it becomes an involved process, IMHO.
Good luck. Don't give up. The therapy takes some tweaking but it will get better.
L o R i
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Born Tired
- Posts: 327
- Joined: Fri Sep 30, 2005 7:49 pm
Re: Learning...
Charlie,Charle wrote:
I slept fairly well last night but my wife said that I was still pretty twitchy during the night. I've always felt that I've slept pretty well and have only just started to feel that I wasn't getting enough sleep within the last couple of years. The thrashing during the night is a fairly new thing.
Before CPAP I did a lot of twitching and jerking through the night. It didn't stop right away, but after being on CPAP for a while I suddenly realized the twitching and jerking was essentially gone. Since I still don't wake up feeling great in the AM, this is one way I know this therapy is helping.
Esther
My husband says, "Esther is not a morning person---and it goes downhill from there."
I Thes. 5:16 "Rejoice evermore."
I Thes. 5:16 "Rejoice evermore."
Esther,
Thanks for your post... My wife has been sleeping much better since I started using the S8 & Aura Friday night so I'm guessing that my twitching/thrashing and snoring have decreased. Last night was the first night that I finally got the leakage numbers below 0.4L/s ( 0.38 ) so Lori's adjustment recommendations for the Aura Nasal Interface have helped. My pressure reading was 11.6 (running in Auto) and my AHI was 11.1.
I may switch over to CPAP mode after a few weeks to see if I can bring the AI & HI numbers down. I was hoping that the Apnea and hyponea incidents would have come down right away but even if they don't, I'm happy that I'm impinging less on my wife's sleep and also seem to be getting more rest.
Thanks for your post... My wife has been sleeping much better since I started using the S8 & Aura Friday night so I'm guessing that my twitching/thrashing and snoring have decreased. Last night was the first night that I finally got the leakage numbers below 0.4L/s ( 0.38 ) so Lori's adjustment recommendations for the Aura Nasal Interface have helped. My pressure reading was 11.6 (running in Auto) and my AHI was 11.1.
I may switch over to CPAP mode after a few weeks to see if I can bring the AI & HI numbers down. I was hoping that the Apnea and hyponea incidents would have come down right away but even if they don't, I'm happy that I'm impinging less on my wife's sleep and also seem to be getting more rest.