Concerned about shortness of breath

[moondoggy]

Can someone let me know if this is typical or unusual and if typical what you did to correct the situation?

Background ..... I'm a 60 year old male, slightly overweight. I do not have asthma or alergies that I'm aware of and at the moment I'm not suffering from a cold. Note also that prior to November 2011 I was not having any problems with my heart, respiration or with fatigue. In November of 2011 I had a case of pericarditis (inflamation of the heart) due to a virus and as a result I had 6 Afib events following my discharge from the hospital. I was put on a Cpap machine because I snore like a freight train and the heart doc was concerned that the Afib events I had after the pericarditis where not so much a result of the pericarditis but sleep apnea. The heart doc also put me on two medications - metoprolol to control heart rate and sotalol to control heart rhythm.

OK. Here's what's been going on..... I've been having trouble finding a nasal mask that fits right so I've been swapping between a Resmed Softgel and a Resmed Micro. The Softgel does not leave red marks on my nose but leaks more than the micro which does leave some heavy duty marks on my nose. Anyway Thursday and Friday night I was using the Softgel and before bedtime I noted that although am not experiencing a cold, I was severely clogged up so I used a saline spray in the hope of opening myself up. Well, toward morning I woke up feeling like the pressure in my cpap mask was at it's max and I was having troulble both breathing in and especially breathing out. I also felt like both nostrils were almost plugged and that this was why I was having soooo much problem breathing. Nothing I could do at that point other than take the mask off and not breath or leave the mask on and not breath so I left it on. Nothing unusual on Friday morning but on Saturday I noticed that I was very short on breath and my heart was racing going up stairs. I checked myself out later on and my heart rate was normal and my pulse-ox was 96% so I figure that it was not another Afib event. Basically I was very short winded all day Saturday.

Saturday night I felt like my sinues were fairly open going to bed but I swiched back to the Micro mask that leaks less last night and when I woke up this morning (Sunday) I was not having any problems breathing with the mask on. Although I felt less short of breath today than yesterday the shortness of breath is still there. Note that in addition to these two days of shortness of breath its felt, at times, like my chest has gotten workout overnight breathing.

So..... Can anyone tell me if the shortness of breath is related to my the CPAP pressure (13 -17 in my case) or to the mask I'm using or leakage or to CPAP treatment in general? If it is related to something CPAP related how can I fix this?

[HoseCrusher]

It almost sounds like your afib is kicking in and out.

At any rate, there are times when adjusting humidity either up or down (or both... ) makes a difference with stuffiness.

You should discuss this with your doctor. A Halter monitor may give you better insight, but if you have a pulse oximeter that would also track your heart rate while you sleep.

[chunkyfrog]

Call the doctor, if you haven't already.
I would.

[sandman19]

See your doctor urgently. A Fib can be tricky to control. Blood clots to the lungs can be "silent", and also deadly. Sandman19

[moondoggy]

Update:

I had an appointment with my cardiologist yesterday and asked if having clogged sinuses and not being able to breath with my nasal mask on had anything to do with my A-FIB event and my shortness of breath. My doctor stated that everything that went on those two nights caused the A-FIB. He stated that my inability to breath caused my heart to be under so much stress that it was almost a given that I was going to have an A-FIB event. He stated that had I had a full face mask it might have been different. He also stated that the shortness of breath was probably also caused by my heart being under so much stress from not getting enough oxygen those two nights.

At this point however I've been in normal sinus rhythm since and with the blood thinner and the other drugs I'm taking for heart rate and heart rhythm he's not making any changes. What my cardiologist was more concerned about was why I was clogged up in the first place given that I didn't have a cold or anything else going on so he's sending me to see my Ear, Nose and Throat special to see if anything needs to be done. I'm pretty sure I'm going to investigate getting a full face mask when the quarter is over.

[MKA]

I'm thinking you are a great candidate for FFM. I belive that sleep apnea probably did contribute to your A-Fib problem. That is about the only health issue I don't have at this point related to sleep apnea. Hope this gets worked out for you. Keep in touch with your doctors.