Doctor thinks i might not need cpap

[masterpkpk]

after talking with my doctor about some chest tightness I was having (and doing an ekg/chest xray to rule anything out) she was questioning whether or not I needed cpap, or if I was just experiencing fatigue due to general anxiety/hypochondria. My ahi in lab was 5.3 a couple years ago, I hit all stages of sleep, rem being 18% and had a sleep efficiency of 97% rdi was also 5.3. They said they didn't notice any sleep fragmentation either.



I guess my question is, with this information is it unlikely that my mild osa is causing my excessive daytime sleepiness?

[palerider]

So, if you have an ahi of 5, which is the cutoff for what doctors say is "just fine", that means, 60/5=12,that, *on average* your sleep is getting interrupted every 12 minutes by an apnea or hypopnoea, more likely, more often by other breathing problems, like flow limitations or snoring, things they don't count in the ahi.

Now, maybe you can get good restful sleep with someone poking you with a sharp stick every 12 minutes, (or more often) all night long... I know I can't.

[ChicagoGranny]

general anxiety

Sleep apnea is one of the major causes of anxiety and depression.

[Dog Slobber]

You've been using your CPAP for about a month now.

How has it been working?

You should be creating a single therapy topic and posting within it. This way people can conveniently scan back and see relevant charts and other relevant information.

[masterpkpk]

Thanks for the replies! Good info and opinions thanks dog slobber. Ill try to keep my posts in a single thread. Im feeling like i have more energy in general the last couple of days, which has been nice. I notice that more than one cup of coffee actually leavs me feeling jittery and uncomfortable opposed to need 3 or 4 just to function.

[chunkyfrog]

Remember, if you are "on the edge", and in an HMO, your doctor may be "influenced"
to provide the least costly treatment, even if it's not the best for your health.