Anyone w/ "complex apnea"? Events possible awake?

[Fitness Seeker]

Since I"m still struggling w/ my machine and it's been almost 2 weeks, I had been advised to just use for a couple of hours a night and to try to use it while watching tv/reading. For a week i used it overnight exclusively in bed, and the machine registered AHI normally less than 1. The past couple of days I've been using it while reading and 3-3.5 hours in bed (it keeps me awake so badly) i yank it off and taking the advice of an AWAKE presenter in using it less to acclimate gradually. The AHI registered over 1 today. Is it possible to have events while awake w/o one's awareness?

Also wondered if anyone has "complex apnea"?

I was told i had UARS b/c of severe shallow breathing (hypopneas only during overnight). When i had the overnight titration "central apneas" developed on the cpap. Which i never had on the overnight. So the titration treatment were causing apneas for me. I haven't analyzed the data yet since i've had the machine on my own computer but i remember seeing there were central events. Right now i'm using an apap, which is what was prescribed to me, but I was told by the AWAKE presenter that I shd be needing an bi-pap or some "servo w/ ventiliator". Can someone shed some light on what these are?

[Otter]

Since I"m still struggling w/ my machine and it's been almost 2 weeks, I had been advised to just use for a couple of hours a night and to try to use it while watching tv/reading. For a week i used it overnight exclusively in bed, and the machine registered AHI normally less than 1. The past couple of days I've been using it while reading and 3-3.5 hours in bed (it keeps me awake so badly) i yank it off and taking the advice of an AWAKE presenter in using it less to acclimate gradually. The AHI registered over 1 today. Is it possible to have events while awake w/o one's awareness??

Yes, not only is it possible, it's the most likely explanation for centrals logged by a CPAP machine. People stop breathing all the time when they are thinking or engaged in a task. An occasional central apnea while asleep isn't a problem either.

How is your mask keeping you up? If you post some details, someone here may have something to offer.

[archangle]

If you're awake, your CPAP machine may score false apneas and other events. Awake breathing is different from sleep breathing.

Breathing patterns that indicate a problem if you're asleep are perfectly normal while awake and do you no harm. For instance, you may hold your breath when reaching for something, moving, or even thinking hard. You won't do this if you're asleep unless something is wrong.

Unfortunately, the CPAP machine doesn't know whether you're awake or asleep so it plays it safe and records an apnea. That's one of the reasons you need to get the software and analyze the results, including waveforms, to see how real the events are instead of just using the number.

An 11 second apnea every so often is not a problem. A 120 second apnea is a big deal.

By the way, this happens if you wake up in the night and have trouble getting back to sleep while lying in bed, too. It can skew your numbers. Yet another reason to really look at the data and waveforms.

By the way, you may need to record 4 hours of use daily to meet insurance requirements. Using the machine while awake DOES usually count.

Be skeptical about a diagnosis of UARS or about needing a bilevel or ASV machine because of centrals. Some people do need them, but someone should really look closely at your data, including waveforms, instead of just looking at the number of events.

The other problem of UARS is that some insurance may not pay for a CPAP machine for UARS, but they will pay for it for apnea. Sometimes the doctors or clinics "cheat" a little on the diagnosis to help you out. CPAP is the correct treatment for UARS.

By the way, "BiPAP" and "VPAP" are trademarks for a particular manufacturer's brand of "bilevel" PAP machine.

[archangle]

Gee, that was wordy.

You can mostly ignore any events recorded by your machine while you're awake.

[JohnBFisher]

Gee, that was wordy.

You can mostly ignore any events recorded by your machine while you're awake.

No, no. Don't go for "short and sweet". No one will believe you, if all you give are simple answers!

[napstress]

Gee, that was wordy.

You can mostly ignore any events recorded by your machine while you're awake.

No, no. Don't go for "short and sweet". No one will believe you, if all you give are simple answers!

Or they'll think you're a guru and you'll develop a following.

[DaveLP]

Ask me what time it is and I'll give you a short seminar in watch building.

[ozze_dollar]

I have complex sleep apnia. It was recommended for me to buy the Resmed VPAP adapt SV.
Its interesting though,I recently saw a sleep specialist and he said with the continued use of a CPAP the central type of apnia may go away. He suggested that Resmed just wanted me to buy the more expensive machine.

[archangle]

Gee, that was wordy.

You can mostly ignore any events recorded by your machine while you're awake.

No, no. Don't go for "short and sweet". No one will believe you, if all you give are simple answers!

Or they'll think you're a guru and you'll develop a following.

What is the sound of one mask flapping?

[archangle]

I have complex sleep apnia. It was recommended for me to buy the Resmed VPAP adapt SV.
Its interesting though,I recently saw a sleep specialist and he said with the continued use of a CPAP the central type of apnia may go away. He suggested that Resmed just wanted me to buy the more expensive machine.

I'll recommend watching your condition carefully. Work with your sleep specialist. I'd say to get the software (Resscan or SleepyHead) and look at your waveforms and consult your doctor if anything scary pops up.

[Fitness Seeker]

Shd I be printing my data graphs out so I can compare? It would be alot of paper. Is it possible to have a week's data plotted on a graph for comparison ? Ok, let me try to save the data as a pdf file and copy it here and someone can tell me how to interpret my results.

[Fitness Seeker]

Still working on trying to save one night 's data and to copy and paste on to here.

[JohnBFisher]

I have complex sleep apnia. It was recommended for me to buy the Resmed VPAP adapt SV.
Its interesting though,I recently saw a sleep specialist and he said with the continued use of a CPAP the central type of apnia may go away. He suggested that Resmed just wanted me to buy the more expensive machine.

ozze_dollar, there is one key word in that paragraph. "MAY". For such a small, three letter word the impact is HUGE.

What might happen if it does not go away? Well, all the traditional problems with sleep apnea - uncontrolled high blood pressure, ongoing high stress hormones, increased body weight, increased risk of diabetes, increased risk of damage to kidneys, increased risk of cardiac issues, increased risk of strokes ...

"MAY" will require REALLY careful monitoring. If it does not go away and you continue to have central apneas, you need to have it addressed. As someone who ended up with permanent kidney damage because I could not get doctors to take my central apnea seriously, PLEASE keep a close eye on it. I do not want to see anyone else in the same situation.

[JohnBFisher]

... What is the sound of one mask flapping? ...

Against my face, it's a very annoying face fart !!

[napstress]

What is the sound of one mask flapping?

You're an anti-ninja!