Increasing AHI and I don't know why???

[dnrperez]

I noticed the other night that my AHI jumped from avg of 1-2 to 6+ over night and I don't know why. The DME company changed my mask to a nasal pillow, and I couldn't tolerate it so I went back to my other mask. Now my AHI is climbing and I am at a loss as to why. Any insight as to why this is happening. The only change as been the mask itself, and locally our allergens have started to go sky high - is this a factor?

Thanks,

Rich

[LSAT]

Leaks will cause your AHI to increase. Is your machine set to auto?

[dnrperez]

Yup - haven't changed anything from previous night. I just looked and my leaks are also higher, but haven't changed anything other the mask.

Rich

[LSAT]

Yup - haven't changed anything from previous night. I just looked and my leaks are also higher, but haven't changed anything other the mask.

Rich

If your machine is set to auto it should adjust for leak caused apneas. What are your settings?

[bayourest]

I have been having a similar experience. I'll have AHI below 1 for a couple of nights and then it suddenly goes up to 3 or so and I dont really know why.
Last night I had AHI of 2.1 and the night before it was 0.6.
"nothing" was different
But I looked at my data and saw that last night there were some higher leaks that corresponded to the time of the clusters of events that occurred. so I assume that the leaks, although not really high, had something to do with the change in events that led to a higher AHI.
I think you have to adjust your headgear every night. I used to think that when I got it right I could leave it that way and it would be fine. But I dont think that is so. My headgear is 9 mos old (mask cushion is 3 mos) and I feel that it's kind of stretched a bit. So tonight I'll try new headgear and see how that affects the numbers. I just think the mask fit is something that you just have to keep assessing and adjusting particularly if it's a FFM. (I cant see your original post at the moment but I assume you have a FFM.)

[dnrperez]

RemStar Pro with C-Flex+ pressure setting is 5cm h20 with heated/humidified water set at 3 using a comfortfull with blue gel mask. All the equipment and mask are less than 2 months old.

Rich

[ozze_dollar]

Perhaps you need to change your machine mask setting from Nasal pillow back to nasal mask. I dont think it would make much difference though. How old is your cushion??

[dnrperez]

the cushion is not even 60 days old yet.

[ameriken]

I have been having a similar experience. I'll have AHI below 1 for a couple of nights and then it suddenly goes up to 3 or so and I dont really know why.
Last night I had AHI of 2.1 and the night before it was 0.6.
"nothing" was different
But I looked at my data and saw that last night there were some higher leaks that corresponded to the time of the clusters of events that occurred. so I assume that the leaks, although not really high, had something to do with the change in events that led to a higher AHI.
I think you have to adjust your headgear every night. I used to think that when I got it right I could leave it that way and it would be fine. But I dont think that is so. My headgear is 9 mos old (mask cushion is 3 mos) and I feel that it's kind of stretched a bit. So tonight I'll try new headgear and see how that affects the numbers. I just think the mask fit is something that you just have to keep assessing and adjusting particularly if it's a FFM. (I cant see your original post at the moment but I assume you have a FFM.)

Don't be too concerned about anything under 5...under 5 is that of a normal breathing, normal sleeping person without sleep apnea. Meaning, people without sleep apnea have events and can have a 2.6, a 4.2, .6. Everyone has events at night as there is no perfect, event-free sleep. Only those with 5 and over are considered for therapy, and even 5 to 10 is nothing to be too alarmed about.

So, if you're 5 and under, it really doesn't matter if one night you have .6 and then a 2.1, you're therapy is working and the AHI's will fluctuate no matter what you do. You are exactly where you need to be.

[ameriken]

I noticed the other night that my AHI jumped from avg of 1-2 to 6+ over night and I don't know why. The DME company changed my mask to a nasal pillow, and I couldn't tolerate it so I went back to my other mask. Now my AHI is climbing and I am at a loss as to why. Any insight as to why this is happening. The only change as been the mask itself, and locally our allergens have started to go sky high - is this a factor?

Thanks,

Rich

How long has this increase to 6 plus been going on?

[Paper_Nanny]

I tried to post this a moment ago, but it didn't show up. I think maybe Ameriken was posting at the same time and that caused my post to malfunction. I think this is pretty close to what I said last time...

I noticed the other night that my AHI jumped from avg of 1-2 to 6+ over night and I don't know why.

My AHI can vary for reasons unrelated to my bipap equipment. For example, I notice that it goes up sometimes when I am overly tired, if I have had alcohol within a couple hours of going to sleep, if I have a particularly restless night of sleep because of anxiety, pain, bedroom too warm, etc.. Also, my AHI goes up sometime if I take sedating medications that I don't usually take, such as antihistamines.

Deborah

[bayourest]

Thanks Ameriken
I agree with you about my numbers. The fluctuations in AHI are more of a question of curiosity to me at this point. I feel that my therapy is working pretty well and I feel so much better now than when I began 13 mos ago. I know that below 5 is considered a normal AHI but I feel better when it's below 2 so sometimes I succumb to the challenge of trying to figure it out and sometimes I don't even check the numbers! But I was not so in the beginning!

[ameriken]

Thanks Ameriken
I agree with you about my numbers. The fluctuations in AHI are more of a question of curiosity to me at this point. I feel that my therapy is working pretty well and I feel so much better now than when I began 13 mos ago. I know that below 5 is considered a normal AHI but I feel better when it's below 2 so sometimes I succumb to the challenge of trying to figure it out and sometimes I don't even check the numbers! But I was not so in the beginning!

Yeah, I hear ya, I've got to watch myself because sometimes I get bogged down by the numbers. Glad it's working out...how long did it take before you really started feeling well?

[bayourest]

I would say that by about 9 months or so on xpap I knew I was getting better sleep and I knew I was more rested. To my dismay, I still did not feel like I had much energy. When I saw my primary care physician 11 mos after I started she adjusted my thyroid meds. About a week after that medication was increased I began to really feel a lot better. That's when It all came together a lot more for me. But initially I struggled a lot with the cpap for months, and chased the numbers and the pressures. I was not one who felt the beneficial effects quickly. It was a slow process and I would choose certain times of the day to check myself to see if there was any improvement (hey, I am no longer falling asleep every day at that 9 a m meeting!) After 4 months I got the quattro FX mask and that helped a lot compared to the quattro mirage and ultra-mirage masks that I had tried. so this is just to say that it can take a while to feel better on cpap. It is worth the effort and all the tweaking etc. but there may be other issues that affect how well you feel.

[ameriken]

Yep, almost 7 months for me and it's been a long slow process. Feeling better little by little but no major improvements. Just started O2 which is helping, but still the mornings are tough for me. Getting there though. Thanks...I'm just trying to get a feel for how long it takes for some folks. I never realized how it can take so long, and trying to figure out the other issues is half the battle.

Thanks, and good luck