Chest pain with APAP use, what's the connection?

[mountainlvr]

I'll be brief... ever since I have been sleeping through the night with my machine, I have been having chest pain the whole next day. It's just painful enough to be worrysome. It's between my left breast and center of my chest, and toward the bottom of my breast. Kind of just where your heart is, which is what worries me. It's sort of like a cramp, like when you get a gas pain in your chest, but not where I have always had gas pains, those are usually right underneath my left breast. Also, I have a fluttering feeling, like my heart is fluttering, very bizarre.

There were three nights that I didn't use my machine at all (in the past three weeks I would say) and on all three occasions I noticed my chest didn't hurt at all the next day.

I have read someplace on here something about your lungs doing something that can cause chest pain, is that right?

Anyway, I know I need to tell my doc about it, but just wondering if anyone else has the same thing going on. It's bothering me a lot at the moment and thought I'd ask so maybe someone will relate and I can sleep tonight without worrying myself silly!!!

Thanks all!!!

[N6CRV]

Hello, all I can tell you is yes I have gotten more chest , rib pain after I started with the Cpap. Not sure if it is the same reason as yours. But I have COPD and my lungs don't inflate like they should. I even have to take pain meds for the chest pain. I was told that I'm getting more pain now as my lungs are being able to inflate more. I have been on Cpap now for a month and it is getting better (the pain) more like it was before starting. I will say that I can take a deeper breath now the before. Hope that is what you are getting. I would sure as the DR. to be sure!
Don

[Wulfman]

How is your machine configured?
All the settings, please.
How long have you been on therapy?

Den

[dsm]

Chest pain is a not uncommon side effect of CPAP - over 3 years I have had about 4 bouts of 'nightly' chest pain that I am satisfied was related to CPAP.

At one point about 3 years back I had chest pain that worried me & ended up doing a full ECG stress test & was told I was pretty fit. The chest pain was traced to a period of severe stress at work (was ready to quit over a bad management decision).

So, chest pain can be from xPAP or can be heart & can be stress.

Doc shd be able to pinpoint the cause - good luck

DSM

[mountainlvr]

I'm embarrassed to say I don't know all my settings, except that my pressure range is set at 6 - 18, and I've been on this therepy since Jan. 15th. I keep the humidifier on 2.

So far, my average AHI is 2.7 over 7 days, and 3.5 over 30 days
my average pressure is 8.1
Leaks are 27 and under
average use 6.5 hours a night

Wish I could tell you more, that's all I can get from my machine.

Thanks for asking.

[Wulfman]

I'm embarrassed to say I don't know all my settings, except that my pressure range is set at 6 - 18, and I've been on this therepy since Jan. 15th. I keep the humidifier on 2.

So far, my average AHI is 2.7 over 7 days, and 3.5 over 30 days
my average pressure is 8.1
Leaks are 27 and under
average use 6.5 hours a night

Wish I could tell you more, that's all I can get from my machine.

Thanks for asking.

If I were you, I'd strongly consider setting the machine in CPAP mode (pressure of maybe 8 or 9 cm. to start with) and see if it makes a difference.

It could be any number of things, but changing pressures in the machine during the night can disrupt sleep. You may also find your AHI numbers dropping by using a fixed pressure, too. APAPs take too long to respond to events if the pressure is too low.

Den

[mountainlvr]

Can I change my machine to CPAP mode myself or do I need my DME guy to come back out?????

[tomjax]

Chest pains are just another of a zillion conditions many have asked her and hope for answers.
In some cases there may be a causal relationsihip, others aer totally coincidental.

Most of us are not all that healthy and have a myriad of other conditions.


We have diabetes and go the endocrinologist.
We have weight problems and mostly talk about it.
We have hypertension and go to the internist.
Whe have breathing problems and got to a pulmonologist.
We go to the sleep doc.
Unfortunately, most of the docs concern themselves with only those sx that in their specialty.

Maybe one day, these doce will realize that ALL OF THE ABOVE are connected.
When they start treating all of the above as a single manifestation can they or we truly appreciate the magnitude of the problem.

In many cases other conditions arise that we and the docs are tempted to connect, but in fact they are totally coincidental, not causal.
The problem here is that NONE OF THE DOCS can give a truly definitive answer to our questions.
They will ALWAYS guess!!
Maybe, maybe not, but far too many will take anything their doc says as the final word.

Chest pains? I am scheduled for a heart cath Friday. Several episodes of angina lately.

Interesting Sat night trip to ER.
I was having an episode that did not go away, so I told her we would ride downtown toward the hospital- where the cath will be done, not the south branch nearby that does not have a cath lab.
So I go in and tell the lady I came here just in cast the pain did not go away.
She started immediately treating me like a patient.
She was not listening and kept putting needles in my arm and an EKG.

My pain went away as it always does.
I then told them they were not listening to me and I was following my docs advice.
My advice was to go to ER if my nitro, ASA 5 gr, and atenolol 50 did not reaolve it.
If this was good enough for Cheney it was good enough for me.
Since I had not seen a doc at this point, I could not be charted as leaving AMA- against medical advice.
I told them I was out ot there since my SX were in no way suggsstive of an infarct, just angina.
Came home and no problem all day sun or today.
I know it will start again, but no way to know when or how severe or if it is the biggie and I am going to join Elizabeth and Fred Sanford.
No way to know.
Does not help to watch my money evaporate in the market.

Don't you just love the new administration and how they are giving away our money?
gonna get worse

I could be wrong, Tom

[Wulfman]

Can I change my machine to CPAP mode myself or do I need my DME guy to come back out?????

Yep.
If yours is the one pictured in your profile, these instructions should provide you with a means to change it.
I also suggest copying them to a file on your computer for future reference.
Also, before you do make any changes, scroll through the options and settings and write down exactly what your existing settings are. Once you familiarize yourself with it, it's easier to program then many/most other electronic devices.

Den



REMstar Auto w/C-Flex Setup

When in the Setup Menu, the humidifier ^ and ramp v buttons operate as up and down keys to change the settings, the left/right user buttons < > allow you to go to the previous/next question or setting, and the pressure start/stop button is used to exit the Setup Menu. Holding the humidifier or ramp buttons down will cause the values to change more quickly.

To enter the Therapy Setup Menu, hold the two top user buttons < > down while plugging in the power cord.
Continue holding the buttons down until the REMstar Auto w/C-Flex beeps twice. (about 5 seconds)

Note: The word "setup" will appear on all of the screens indicating that you are in the Therapy Setup Menu.
(If you press the Pressure start/stop button, you will exit the Setup Menu.)

A. Compliance hours/nights: (recommend leaving alone, but CAN be cleared at this point)
Select next setting with >

B. Therapy mode: (CPAP/CFLE/APAP/AFLE) select with ^ or v
Select next setting with >

B1. If CPAP or CFLE select pressure setting: Select with ^ or v
Select next setting with >

B1a. C-Flex mode (if you chose CFLE mode): Select setting 1, 2 or 3 with ^
Select next setting with >

B2. If APAP or AFLE, select minimum pressure setting: Select with ^ or v
Select next setting with >

B2a. If APAP or AFLE, select maximum pressure setting: Select with ^ or v
Select next setting with >

B2b. C-Flex mode (if you chose AFLE mode): Select setting 1, 2 or 3 with ^
Select next setting with >

C: Ramp time setting: Select with ^ or v
(ramp time will be turned off with a setting of 0)
(if using APAP or AFLE mode, Ramp Length Setting MUST be set to 0:00)
Select next setting with >

D. Ramp pressure setting: Select with ^ or v (use only in CPAP or CFLE mode)
Select next setting with >

E. Patient disconnect setting: 1 = on 0 = off Select with ^ or v
Select next setting with >

F. Buttons lights setting: 1 = on 0 = off Select with ^ or v

(Last setting. Use On/Off button to exit Setup)