Anybody using and have mild OSA?

[Goldpawn]

I am a new user, a setting of 5cm. I dont really have any of the memory problems, sleepiness, or other symptoms of apnea. I did snore quite a bit till I recently had a esophigial dilation done. Since my dilation on 11.15.05, my snoring has all but gone away. The question in my mind is do I really need this, and why is my setting relatively low compared to most users.
Steve

[Sleepless on LI]

Steve,

My thoughts exactly...do you really need this? Did you have a PSG done; and, if so, what did it say? 5 cms. is so low that you may have trouble getting used to it at first since it's such a low pressure, you may feel like you're not getting enough air. You WILL get used to it, don't get me wrong. I got used to 4 cms., but why did they tell you that you need the therapy?

[Colorado Jan]

Okay, I'm confused. I thought I had read many times that the pressure you use on your machine has no bearing whatsoever on how severe your sleep apnea is. The pressure is just what it takes to open your airways adequately, right?

In my case, my sleep study showed an AHI of 85 and severe oxygen desats (50 to 60% oxygen levels)...and my pressure was titrated at 9. I now am using an APAP and it is often operating at only 6 cfm.

Snoring is indeed one of the symptoms of OSA, but is it really what we are trying to treat? What we really need to know is what your AHI was at the time of the sleep study....and only then will we know whether you have a mild case of OSA or a more severe case. And, in my opinion, even a mild case is in need of treatment, since untreated OSA contributes to heart problems and stroke, high blood pressure, and all kinds of evils.

JMO,
Jan in Colo.

[ozij]

the pressure you use on your machine has no bearing whatsoever on how severe your sleep apnea is. The pressure is just what it takes to open your airways adequately, right?

You're right, Jan. The pressure is what it takes to keep the airways open.

I possibly have mild apnea (PSG results not very reliable) and my pressure needs are low - I spend most of the night on 6, sometimes the pressure rises to the to limit - 7.5.

When I started, 4 was a blessing, I could feel it when the machine went from 4 to 5. When the machine reached pressure above 7 I had trouble breathing agains them - so not every one feels like they're suffocating at lower pressures.

WAFlowers, whose symptoms were very bad, and apnea severe (if I remember correctly), does very well at about 8.5.
There a number o answers to Steve's (Goldpawn's) "do I really need this quetion" - but and they can be found in the PSGs
* How bad was your breathing disturbance during your first PSG (sleep study)?
* Did you have a PSG after your esophagal (sp?) dilation? If yes, what did it show about breathing disturbances? If no, why not?

The fact that you no longer snore might mean that you no longer have breathing disturbances when you sleep - but that is not necssarily so. Snoring and apneas are not the same thing

O.

[rested gal]

I agree with Jan and ozij. The pressure it takes to keep your throat open has nothing to do with how "mild" or "severe" your Obstructive Sleep Apnea is.

It's risky, imho, to assume that airway surgery and "no snoring" has taken care of one's apnea. Best to have a follow-up sleep study to see just what your situation is.

[Titrator]

Greetings Steve,

Thanks for writing.

You may indeed need the cpap therapy. That should be determined with a sleep study to see if you have indeed won the battle on sleep apnea.

The pressure of 5cm is low, but it is the amount of pressure it takes to keep your airway open. This is variable and doesn't mean that you are borderline. Only the sleep study will tell for sure.

I would like to hear more about your esphageal dialation. That seems very interesting.

Regards,

Ted the Titrator