BiPap autoSV Advanced machine

[lillypat]

I've been on a BiPap autoSV Advanced with humidifier for about 2 months. When I first go to bed the machine enables me to intake more air, then have an easier time exhaling because the air pressure drops. (That isn't the "scientific" description, just in my own words. Hope it makes sense). The problem I have is that in the middle of the night I will wake up because the machine is blowing a strong constant amount of air that leaks around my full-face mask no matter what. I then remove the mask and turn off the machine. A few minutes later I can put the mask back on and the machine works fine. But later on, the problem happens again and I end up removing the mask for the rest of the night. Anyone have any idea why this is happening?

[brazospearl]

I'm not really well-versed in how bipaps work, so I may be way off here, but it sounds like the machine is responding to an event by raising the pressure and that change is what's waking you up. If this is happening at regular intervals it might be connected to a particular sleep phase. Again, I'm just guessing, but I bet one of our wise bipap users will be along shortly to provide more info for you.

[OutaSync]

Without the software to see what is actually happening to you, we can only guess. It sounds to me as though you are waking as a result of a leaking mask. Your machine is reacting to an apnea by raising the pressure, as it is supposed to do. If your mask is not adjusted to be able to withstand the higher pressures, it will leak. Believe me, this is common. When you wake up with the leaks, adjust your mask while your machine is at the higher pressure and KEEP it on! It won't do you any good if you take it off to go back to sleep. It may be that you need a different mask to withstand the higher pressures. Have you ever looked at the screen to see what the pressure is when you are awakened? Just curious to see how high it is going.

[Banned]

The problem I have is that in the middle of the night I will wake up because the machine is blowing a strong constant amount of air that leaks around my full-face mask no matter what. Anyone have any idea why this is happening?

MAX Pressure is too high. Adjust MAX Pressure to no more than 25cmH20.

Banned

[JohnBFisher]

The problem I have is that in the middle of the night I will wake up because the machine is blowing a strong constant amount of air that leaks around my full-face mask no matter what. Anyone have any idea why this is happening?

MAX Pressure is too high. Adjust MAX Pressure to no more than 25cmH20.

Banned

Banned, in a short phrase "What the ..."? Why would you decide to change the prescription for someone who uses an ASV machine without finding out a LOT more about their condition? That is EXACTLY why doctors and respiratory therapists HATE it when folks like us jump in and start tweaking without knowing the wheres and whys of the machine.

Lillypat, I agree with OutaSync. A little bit of background is needed here for EVERYONE to read:

An ASV machine (like the one you have) is designed to help eliminate central apneas and/or periodic breathing, that results form an overshoot / undershoot condition. That is you don't breathe enough, eventually the breathing ceases - you have a central sleep apnea event. (This is the undershoot phase of the cycle). Eventually the CO2 builds up and triggers your body to restart breathing. But your body tends to over compensate and breathes a bit more quickly (this is the overshoot phase of the cycle). Your CO2 levels drop off (not much CO2 in your blood stream) and the cycle starts all over again.

The ASV machine helps eliminate this cycle by helping sustain breathing even when your body fails to do so. It ramps the pressure up to sustain breathing (air intake) during the undershoot cycle. This helps decrease the tendency to overshoot. It helps break the cycle of periodic breathing and tends to decrease the tendency to have central apnea events.

Often these central apneas tend to come during light stages of sleep - or when you fall back asleep after awakening, such as when you turn over during sleep. Thus, having your sleep interrupted with a leaking mask seems to indicate the machine noted a central apnea and increased the pressure. Unfortunately, at the top end of the range it can lead to leaks. Rather than decreasing the pressure, you want to try to decrease the leaks.

How do you decrease the leaks when the machine swings to 25cm H2O or higher? Well, one thing I've found that helps me are the RemZzzs CPAP Mask Liners at http://www.remzzzs.com/ . Though it takes some adjusting to make them work, they do work. It seems to decrease the tendency of the mask to "blow out" the seal. I find I can reuse the liners more than one night, so the price is reasonable.

And if you read the CPAPtalk website you will find many, many other tricks that seem to help.

But change the prescription without knowing the details of the reasons why? No! I definitely do not recommend that.

[Madalot]

While I'm not using this specific machine, my ventilator functions in a very similar fashion. I agree that more information is needed for people to try to help you, but also agree that you should never make any therapy-related adjustments without consulting your doctor/respiratory therapist.

My pressure starts out at 14/6, but the inhale pressure is frequently a lot higher later on, especially early in the moring. I sometimes am awakened by the increased pressure causing a leak (I hate those noises it makes). I do what Outasync suggests -- adjust the mask WITHOUT removing it and turn over and go back to sleep.