Question about leak rate

[SleepOly]

Can anyone explain to me what the leak rate means. Comparing sleepyhead and onkor, I show an average of 26 lpm. My pressure has been roughly 9cm for 90%, which amazes me as I thought I "needed" 12 cm for the last several years to sleep well. The first night my AHI was 7.48. Set to auto, I now get under 2 AHI most nights, and am under a lot less air pressure. I hope to get caught up on my sleep debt soon!

[cowlypso]

In both Onkor and SleepyHead, the leak rate shown is the total leak. The total leak is the combination of the intentional and unintentional leak.

Intentional leak is the air coming out of the vent holes in the front of the mask. It's necessary for this air to flow through the mask to remove the exhaled carbon dioxide so you don't suffocate. The intentional leak rate varies by mask and pressure setting. For the swift fx at a pressure of 9, the intentional leak rate is around 30.

The unintentional leak is what we generally call "leaks." Like when your mask leaks and air comes out the side. Or if you open your mouth and air comes out there.

An average leak of 26 is great. It means that you shouldn't have too much unintentional leaking at all. You do want to take a look at the leak graphs, too, to make sure that they are nice smooth lines and not having huge peaks. But it sounds like you've got your unintentional leaks under control. Actually, it sounds like overall you're doing great!

[SleepOly]

Thanks, I wasn't sure at first if the leaks were normal, or bad. After many years on CPAP, I've trained myself to keep my mouth closed mostly, and move my lower jaw forward. With my new machine I find myself sleeping longer, and falling back asleep after waking up early.

When I first started treatment, I would lay in bed feeling sorry for myself for having to be connected to a machine to sleep for the rest of my life. Any more, I could not imagine my life without CPAP, nor do I want to be off one.