OA vs H

[Mr. Denial...]

Which is the bigger evil? I've been in the .5 - 2.0 in AHI, but the difference between OA and H changes a lot on a day to day basis.

Any thoughts?

[LoQ]

I'm have a hard time understanding your question. There are apneas and there are hypopneas (and other sleep events). Apneas can be obstructive, central, or mixed (combination of both obstructive and central). Hypopneas can be obstructive, central, or mixed (combination of both obstructive and central).

As for biggest evil, if you mean apneas vs. hypopneas, anything that reduces oxygen to your brain is evil. There are so many factors involved, including the timeframe and so forth, that I don't think I would want to try to classify one event as more evil than another or try to optimize to one side or the other.

[Captain_Midnight]

Mr D writes....5 - 2.0 in AHI, but the difference between OA and H changes a lot on a day to day basis.

I don't think it's unusual. Every night is different. Sleep position, possible congestion, a glass of vino...many things can account for the randomness of breathing disruptions when connected to the machine.

I'm usually below 1.0, however the distribution of hypopneas ( I usually get a few) and apneas (I occasionally get one, rarely two) is always interesting reading each morning when I scan the Encore data.



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[Hawthorne]

I'm confused too since you show your machine as an M Series Plus, which is not data capable and yet your profile also shows you having Encore Viewer software. Maybe you chose the wrong machine in your profile.

Your .5 to 2.0 AHI is quite good. An AHI under 5 is considered quite well treated sleep apnea.

Almost every one who has sleep apnea has nightly variations because of many things like those Captain_Midnight mentioned.

You are doing quite well with your therapy. If you are getting your data from the software, then your numbers are more accurate than if you really do have the M Series Plus ( the machine you have in your profile). The Plus would not give any data for Encore Viewer. I don't think it even has a smart card. If it does, it will only show compliance. It would only give some data on the LCD screen ( maybe not even that- I'm not sure). You should check the machine you have displayed in your profile. If it was in text in your profile, instead of a picture , we could tell more quickly what machine it is.

As to your question of the lesser of 2 "evils". OAs are worse than Hs because your airway's closed longer during an OA.