Is 75 too old for CPAP? Old Dog New Trick?

[Lizistired]

Does anyone have experience in this area?
I know it is worth doing a sleep study. But I'm doubting that there will be much chance of compliance.
My Dad takes Remeron and says he sleeps fine. He was recently put on oxygen but doesn't use it all the time. He says his O2 stays about 93 but tends to be lower first thing in the morning.
The overnight oximetry didn't have enough information to be conclusive but he has been referred for a sleep study.
Any old hoseheads out here?

[jweeks]

Does anyone have experience in this area?
I know it is worth doing a sleep study. But I'm doubting that there will be much chance of compliance.
My Dad takes Remeron and says he sleeps fine. He was recently put on oxygen but doesn't use it all the time. He says his O2 stays about 93 but tends to be lower first thing in the morning.
The overnight oximetry didn't have enough information to be conclusive but he has been referred for a sleep study.
Any old hoseheads out here?

Hi,

Sleep apnea is highly correlated with age. I saw some data a while back that indicated that folks over age 60 have a much higher rate of apnea, and folks over 70 or 75 have a very high chance of having apnea. Those with untreated apnea are something like 3 times more likely to have a stroke. When you hear about an older person passing away quietly in their sleep, this could be one of the reasons. I think it all boils down to whether or not your dad wants to continue to live. If he is done with life, then don't bother him. But if he has things he wants to accomplish and places to visit, then you really do want to see him get into treatment.

-john-

[HoseCrusher]

I've been told that 75 is the new 50, and old dogs are much trickier than new dogs...

It all comes down to your dads attitude toward life. If he is open to new things, and has reasons to try to live to be 100 or over, he will consider (I was going to say embrace, but I don't think raising expectations that high is reasonable...) a sleep study and take measures to understand and work with the results.

No one wants to believe that their body is failing them and the idea of having to use a "crutch" is hard to settle with, at least at first. Fortunately, we are very adaptive and with the new found energy that comes from a restful nights sleep there are times when a person on crutches can outrun a person in denial of their "issues."

Love him and see if you can educate him about sleep problems. If he truly understands, he may take the ball and run with it.

[AirBreather]

Does anyone have experience in this area?
I know it is worth doing a sleep study. But I'm doubting that there will be much chance of compliance. ...

Maybe and maybe not. I am 73 and wouldn't think of sleeping without CPAP. It makes my life much better, both during the night and each following day. If CPAP improves your dad's life the way it improves mine, he will want to use it.

Though it is commonly thought that older people are more set in their ways and less willing to adapt to new things, that isn't necessarily true. Many young people have difficulty tolerating CPAP where some old folks like myself wouldn't be without it. I definitely think your dad should have a sleep study and that he should give CPAP a try if it is prescribed. No one, regardless of their age, should expect their first nights of treatment to be perfect. It is very important to find a mask that is comfortable and it generally takes a while to learn how a new mask should be adjusted. Even those of us with many years of CPAP experience can have bad nights with a new mask that doesn't fit right or that isn't adjusted right. He should know that and expect some initial frustrations, but the payoff when everything is right can be tremendous and he also should know that.

[Lizistired]

Thanks everyone. I'm thinking along the same lines. I have my 30 day follow up tomorrow and plan to ask my sleep doc about it but wanted to get some real world feedback first.
Airbreather, how old were you when you started CPAP?
Before Remeron he would wake up and not be able to get back to sleep. He was treated for depression and now sleeps through the night, but who knows what kind of sleep it is. It may have been a sleep disorder all along. I know he has a history of acting out dreams. I think it could very well be why he doesn't have much interest in doing anything.
I wish there wasn't so much reference to people being overweight and sleeping on their backs. He and I would have both been tested years ago.

[Hawthorne]

I am 71 and have been on cpap for just over 8 years. It has done wonders for me. I have normal blood pressure and more energy. I also have had Rheumatoid Arthritis for 20 years. Getting diagnosed and getting on cpap has certainly helped me sleep better. I am not wakened in the night or kept awake by pain. Good restorative sleep makes it much easier to deal with the RA during the day as well. I have the energy to do the necessary exercise to help with the RA pain and stiffness.

I expect to still be using cpap when I'm 75 and maybe older than that!

[roster]

Untreated sleep apnea is not just about dying. It is also about suffering for years, developing dementia, depression, anxiety, wearing Depends, spending $75 - 100 thousand dollars per year for a skilled nursing facility, and other unpleasant things.

But I agree with others who posted. If the patient is not motivated he will not be successful with CPAP and it will only be an big aggravation for the caretaker and the patient.

You might want to talk to the doctor about a sleep study followed up by a tracheotomy. I personally believe we should be performing many more tracheotomies.

Of course you already mentioned the point that doctors should be diagnosing their patients much earlier in life and treating them with CPAP while they still have motivation and before so much damage is done.

[jerainey]

I was 79 when diagnosed. Took me several months to accept the gear. If I'd had an S9 with Climate Control and a Swift FX I probably would have been sleeping 9 hours per night, like I do now, in about a week.

[wolewyck]

My dad was recently diagnosed (he joins the rest of us in our family!), and is over 70. He is totally not the 'set in his ways' kind of person, though. Compliance in his case will not be an issue-- he is very health-conscious and is strongly incentivised to get rid of his symptoms... I imagine much depends on one's motivation, and one's belief that the therapy, even if inconvenient, really will make a difference in both quantity and quality of life.

[AirBreather]

Airbreather, how old were you when you started CPAP?

I was 55.

Unlike most users, I liked using CPAP from the first night I used it at home, because I slept so much better (I hadn't liked it during my sleep study, mostly because of a very uncomfortable mask). I had suffered the effects of severe obstructive sleep apnea for many years. CPAP made a huge difference. Masks back then were less comfortable and there weren't near as many varieties to choose from. Rain-out (water condensation in the hose and mask) was a common problem. CPAP machines were very noisy compared to current models. However, despite all that I looked forward to putting my mask on each night and sleeping much better than I had for years.

I have used CPAP every night since I started. I have taken CPAP equipment around the world several times on business trips. I have used it in hospitals following surgeries. I have powered it from batteries on camping trips. I have taken it on boats. I never sleep anywhere without it. I am in excellent health for my age today, but probably wouldn't still be alive if I hadn't started using it.

It is obvious to me that many people give up on CPAP way too soon. A mask that isn't right for a particular user can be impossible to tolerate. Even the best possible mask has to be adjusted correctly to fit and work well. Users have a wide variety of head shapes and sizes. Different people also tend to be annoyed to different degrees by various irritations. I have tried masks others here on the forum love that are terribly uncomfortable for me. Masks that I like might not work for them. We are all different and I would advise anyone starting out to experiment until they find one that works well for them. It doesn't matter how many people may recommend something different. Their recommendation may be great for them while being terrible for others. If someone is discouraged and about to quit, they should instead experiment until they find what is right for them, because doing so can dramatically change the rest of their life.