My Personal Rainbow

[Cr1kk1t]

It started raining here yesterday which has helped my allergies a ton. However I was not expecting to see this kind of rainbow.
You would think it would look better since I am feeling better and can actually breath through my nose now.

[MagsterMile]

Do you know why your graph shows two different colors on your leak graph? My leak graph shows 1 color. It also looks like you had a very sharp spike at one point in the reading. Why would something like that happen?

[Pugsy]

Do you know why your graph shows two different colors on your leak graph? My leak graph shows 1 color.

It's a Respironics thing and the SH software. Total leak top line and an approximate excess leak only in the bottom line similar to ResMed's excess leak.

You would think it would look better since I am feeling better and can actually breath through my nose now.

Is this about what you are seeing now on the other reports or is this one just uglier than usual?
The AHI is hidden by that little box over the breakdown. Is it still about 50% centrals?

[Pugsy]

It also looks like you had a very sharp spike at one point in the reading. Why would something like that happen?

Are you talking about the leak spike? If so that's probably just a mask refit/reseat thing.

[Snowwhite999]

Do you know why your graph shows two different colors on your leak graph? My leak graph shows 1 color.

I think the PR series 60 machines show "total leak", which is the total leak from the mask including the expected vent volume at your pressure, as well as "leak", which is the leak from your mask minus the vented volume. For instance, at my IPAP of 22, my Opus 360 vents about 48L. If I show a total leak of 55L, my actual mask leak is only 7L. I believe Pugsy (our benevolent overlord) has written that leaks under 24L or so are OK, so I don't even think about it.

[Cr1kk1t]

The spike was me taking the mask off briefly then putting it back on. I usually have one a night.

Pugsy: Here are the numbers from last night

CA: 34
OA: 33
Hypo: 20
Rera: 14
FL: 12
PB: 2
VS: 16
VS2: 37
EDIT: Add AHI 11.28
The CA's are way down, the lowest they have ever been. But everything else has gone up. And I am spending at least 20% of my night below 88% O2 saturation. Not sure what to make of it since I feel better for the most part. And this is actually worse then when I was sickest.
I go to the doctor today. Hopefully I can get an affordable sleep study done in the near future. What should I take with me to the appointment?

[Pugsy]

If I show a total leak of 55L, my actual mask leak is only 7L. I believe Pugsy (our benevolent overlord) has written that leaks under 24L or so are OK, so I don't even think about it.

Actually the 24 L/min thing is for S9 Resmed users.
Respironics doesn't have an exact excess leak number to avoid but you can use the 24 L/min as a guideline if you wish. You actually have more room than 24 L/min but some people like to set that as their own personal leak guideline when using Respironics leak numbers.

Respironics just says Large Leak and doesn't tell us a set number where large leak territory begins. Past experience and seeing reports with large leak flags seems to point to 80 to 90 L/min depending on 60 series or 50 series machine.

So if using a 60 series machine..80 L/min seems to be the general area where large leaks are flagged and if someone had a 30 L/min total leak average...there's actually 50 more L/min leak available before large leak territory comes into the picture.
Of course we don't want to see leaks always up around large leak territory if at all possible. Short trips no big deal but if someone is spending most of the night up in that much leak I suspect that their sleep quality will be affected also. We sure don't want a gazillion wake ups due to leaks.

[Pugsy]

CA: 34
OA: 33
Hypo: 20

53 obstructive (OA plus Hyp) and 34 central. So about a third or so central.

Is this doctor a regular family practice type of doctor or some sort of sleep specialist by any chance?

Take your O2 reports along with a couple of the detailed reports.
If you have Encore reports...take a couple of those daily reports also because it's unlikely any doctor will understand SH.

I really think you need to be talking to the doctor about complex sleep apnea at some point. More pressure to deal with the obstructives causes more centrals. Less pressure may reduce the centrals but you aren't comfortable with it and the obstructives increase. Your oxygen levels trouble me.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CU-XTcf ... e=youtu.be

If/when you ever get to have a real sleep study...get one in a lab setting. I don't think that a home study is going to be worthwhile investment for you.

May the centrals will go away with time...I don't know...the doctor may want to develop a wait and see attitude but your oxygen levels bother me. If you weren't spending so much time below 88%.....how far below do you actually go?
Lots of time below 80%? Or a lot of the time up around 85%?

If I remember right you live at higher altitude so your baseline O2 is going to be lower anyway.

[Cr1kk1t]

CA: 34
OA: 33
Hypo: 20

53 obstructive (OA plus Hyp) and 34 central. So about a third or so central.

Is this doctor a regular family practice type of doctor or some sort of sleep specialist by any chance?

If you weren't spending so much time below 88%.....how far below do you actually go?
Lots of time below 80%? Or a lot of the time up around 85%?

If I remember right you live at higher altitude so your baseline O2 is going to be lower anyway.

This is my first time seeing this doctor. She is a family practice type doctor through our low-income clinic. I plan on requesting an in-lab sleep study. The question will be how to pay for it.

My O2 tends to hang between 84 - 86 then goes up to 91 or so then back down again. Some nights I go as high as 94.