How do very old people tolerate CPAP?

[balor123]

I've found my CPAP to be a lot of work, keeping track of supplies, packing/unpacking it when I travel, finding water, and in general sleeping with the hardware. When I'm old an frail, will I still be able to tolerate the therapy?

[chunkyfrog]

I don't know if I will ever be able to tolerate NOT getting therapy.
If I need help keeping stuff together, it is another chore for my caregivers--if and when they are needed..
Continued therapy will help keep my abilities at an optimum level, delaying that requirement.
If my skin becomes thin and fragile, I will have to use a mask liner.
Dying of a stroke because of non-use is not a choice I would make.

[ChicagoGranny]

I've found my CPAP to be a lot of work, keeping track of supplies, packing/unpacking it when I travel, finding water, and in general sleeping with the hardware. When I'm old an frail, will I still be able to tolerate the therapy?

From your other posts it sounds like you are not getting good therapy and this could be causing excess stress and worry for you. Let the forum help you get your therapy straightened out and then you can worry about old age. (I'm "way up there" and its different but better than a dirt nap.)

[Julie]

And btw - one thread will suffice if questions are clear - no need for more. Maybe you can consolidate some of the ones you've posted tonight.

[Goofproof]

As long as they want to live and their brain still functions correctly, very well. Jim

[BlackSpinner]

As long as they want to live and their brain still functions correctly, very well. Jim

And after that their care taker does it for them - Like Dori does.

[Janknitz]

I expect to be using my machine until the day I die, but I think it's unrealistic to expect some older people with cognitive issues especially to newly adjust to CPAP. It's worth a try, but at a certain point the struggle is beyond reason unless you have an extremely patient, kind, and knowledgeable caregiver/spouse like Dori C.

At the point where it causes the person to become agitated or increases agitation, it's time to throw in the towel. That person has lived with apnea for many decades at that point, in most cases. Treatment now will not have terribly dramatic results.

I bumped into a friend of mine who cares for her elderly husband. Despite the fact that she is a retired nurse, she just could not get her husband to wear his mask more than an hour or so. Both were losing sleep and highly frustrated.

Back in my days practicing as an OT if I'd known then what I know now I think I could have helped some people adjust to CPAP, but there are some people who just don't benefit enough to make the struggle worthwhile.

[LSAT]

I've found my CPAP to be a lot of work, keeping track of supplies, packing/unpacking it when I travel, finding water, and in general sleeping with the hardware. When I'm old an frail, will I still be able to tolerate the therapy?

I order supplies 1-2 times a year and I buy distilled water when I buy groceries. I'm 74....when I'm OLD...I don't plan to travel much. I don't consider CPAP to be "a lot of work".

[Lukie]

What do you consider old people? You are as young as you feel. I am 72 years old and I just started on CPAP and my doc says I could be a poster child for CPAP therapy.
I have been on CPAP for 60 days with a hundred per cent compliance. I feel so good with it that I would never sleep without it. It is all in your mind set. You can make it as difficult as you want to. I have my hose hanging on its hose hanger all ready to go. When I want a nap I just pull on my ruby red chin strap and my nano fx nose mask and I am good to go

[Wulfman...]

I've found my CPAP to be a lot of work, keeping track of supplies, packing/unpacking it when I travel, finding water, and in general sleeping with the hardware. When I'm old an frail, will I still be able to tolerate the therapy?

Not me. Been at this for nearly nine years. Over the years, I've stockpiled extra machines and other supplies that will probably last me the rest of my life. There's no "work" involved.
Sounds like you're desperately trying to find excuses NOT to use yours.
Buy an additional machine and keep it packed for your traveling purposes.

By the way, how "old" are YOU?


Den

.

[Hawthorne]

I'm also curious as to how old you are.

I am 74 and have been using cpap for 12+ years. I have severe Rheumatoid Arthritis but take total care of my cpap equipment and checking my data with the software to manage my sleep apnea.

My husband helps with some heavier things around the house but I am still able to take care of my home and my health situation.

I expect that people, of any age, with major mental problems would have difficulty with managing their cpap. I guess we can hope that a caregiver can help them. In some situations where cognitive impairment is major, I doubt that cpap is a priority or would even be worth continuing or starting.

There may be alternative therapies that can be used.

[abby123]

I work in long term care (nursing homes) and I am actually surprised how few patients use a cpap... maybe only 1 or 2 per 50 patients use a cpap. Most are men. I visit many different facilities. Most patients are over 80 years of age and I am referring to the frail elderly.

It is not uncommon to see patients falling asleep throughout the day, sometimes sleeping through meals. I often wonder how many are undiagnosed sleep apnea. Sleep medications are used often in this population...

As far as the supplies, etc... in a health care setting I work in, it is usually up to the family to keep track of that.

My 86 year old father was diagnosed just before I was. I worry that he is not taking care of his equipment... I need to remind him to use it and clean it. He doesn't really understand it all... so I'll need to keep on him.

[balor123]

I'm only 33 years old and I've been using my machine for about 3.5 years with 100% compliance. Not a single missed night with the exception of power outages and only while traveling. I guess old to me would be 80+.

The reason I'm asking is I've been on the fence for a while about whether to pursue jaw surgery. It scares the hell out of me but if I do it, I want to do it while I'm young. I have other reasons to consider it: anterior open bite, significant tooth wear and some gum inflammation (reflux, mouthbreathing, and clenching/bruxing probably from respiratory disturbances but also the open bite), and jaw pain. I've got a nice collection of masks at home. Therapy seemed to be working very well for most of that period but in retrospect it probably wasn't. Two ENTs have warned me that while I tolerate CPAP therapy well now I might not in 30 years.

I broke apart the questions into several threads for a two reasons:
1 - It helps people find answers later when searching
2 - It keeps the conversation cohesive. I find that many questions get lost in long threads and it's hard for people to determine which responses are to which questions since people often answer different questions.
But perhaps I'm also just following practices from other newer Q&A websites (Quora, Stackexchange, etc).

[Julie]

In 30 yrs Cpap will very likely be a quaint anachronism and people will probably just get a shot or something for apnea - I wouldn't worry about it if I were you now.

[Roger2]

When I'm old an frail, will I still be able to tolerate the therapy?

I am curious, just how old do you think "old and frail" is?