newbie help

Last night was first nite of sleep study they woke me twice, first time to put me on O2 and then an hour later put me on CPAP tech said I had it pretty bad.
I'm not going back until next week for second nite of study but they just called me to go ahead and start on a APAP with O2 tonight until I go back next week.
Is this normal. I have just started looking and it looks like I have allot to learn.
Any help or comments welcome
Thank You Joe

I don't know if it's normal, at least it's not for most of us. It sounds like you may be getting better care than normal. Welcome to the Land of the Hosed.

We all wish we didn't have to come here but, Life is full of Hills to overcome, remember that after we get to the top, it's downhill to the easy road.

Enjoy the forum, It's a great place to learn. Jim

your case sounds severe due to the need of supplemental O2. Having you start on autopap while they wait to schedule another titration study appears to be sound advice.

If your SAO2 levels are dropping to dangerously low levels, going on the autopap alone will help bring those levels back to normal levels. Adding the O2 will help that process along. Have you been diagnosed with COPD or other lung disorder?

Is what they are advising normal? I would say yes, is your case common? I would say probably more uncommon than common. Most patients can get by with just the machine itself restoring normal oxygen levels, a few needing supplemental O2 as in your case.

Make sure to get a copy of your sleep study so you know all your numbers. Then you'll know your AHI, desats, etc. and the pressures at which they occurred.

Thank you for the replies. I do not have a lung dias that I know off some test have been done in the last 2 months lung xray good & breathing test okay. BUT I just stopped smoking 6 months ago after 30yrs so who knows what may be in store for me.
I have to go now and pick up my machine looking foward to a good nites sleep.
Thanks again

WORN_OUT@44 wrote:Thank you for the replies. I do not have a lung dias that I know off some test have been done in the last 2 months lung xray good & breathing test okay. BUT I just stopped smoking 6 months ago after 30yrs so who knows what may be in store for me.
I have to go now and pick up my machine looking foward to a good nites sleep.
Thanks again

CONGRATULATIONS on quitting smoking!!!

That is probably the hardest thing I've ever had to do, but a stroke convinced me otherwise. I read research where it can take up to 5 years for your lung capacity to return to normal after you quit smoking. I used to smoke for over 30 years also, been over 5 years now since I quit.

I finally quit using the pill Zyban or WellabutrinSr after trying probably a thousand times before. They now have pills shown even more effective.

What they don't tell you on the Warning label on a pack of cigarettes:
What I learned from a UCSF Neurology exam after my first stroke on examining my MRI's is that those years of smoking causes blood vessel damage to the brain from the effects of nicotine.

Nicotine in the blood causes the blood vessels to constrict and remain constricted over long periods of time. The brain controls its blood flow to it by constricting and expanding of the blood vessels and controlling heart rate. The brain uses more blood than any organ in the body. If you think about it, all organs including the heart are there only to support the survival of the brain.

Nicotine impacts this natural blood vessel expansion action and can actually be seen on a MRI film with an expert eye. The head Professor/Doctor at UCSF Neurology pointed it out to me. He said you smoked for a long long time didn't ya? I said yes. He said see this, see their size, this is what we call Small Vessel Disease we see it a lot in smokers. He said if you stay off cigarettes those blood vessels may eventually return back to normal in about 5yrs of which he showed me an example of what normal was. Blood vessels were like twice the size of mine.

Next, if you study how the blood carries oxygen to the brain it will make even more sense to you. With years of smoking the nicotine in the blood stream causes the blood vessels to constrict making it even harder for the heart to pump blood through your veins but worse is you add carbon dioxide along with other carcinogens in the blood stream. This impedes the blood's ability to carry fresh oxygen on to your brain and other organs. Basically it causes the red blood cells that carry oxygen to become deformed and even smaller in size. Smaller red blood cells and even deformed ones have less ability to carry oxygen so the cycle worsens.

So if you put all this in perspective, you realize that:

1. Nicotine from smoking causes blood vessels to constrict, impedes the ability of the blood to carry oxygen to the brain and other vital organs.
2. Untreated OSA deprives your brain and organs with oxygen all night long.
3. Constricted blood vessels make it harder for your heart to pump blood through eventually leading to heart conditions such as CHF.

Some of the brain's blood vessels like the lateral lenticulostriate arteries are already so tiny a single red blood cell has difficulty traversing them, you don't need outside influences making them smaller.

Before my first stroke, I would unknowingly spend all night fighting OSA and not getting oxygen. Then when I woke up in the morning I'd chain smoke 5-6 smokes with coffee and reading the paper, then off to work I would go and smoke all day long where the cycle would repeat. My brain never got any fresh oxygenated blood. Add a little dehydration to the mix and it is easy to see why I was having a TIA once a week and finally 2 strokes. The effects of Hypoxia can be deadly.

I should mention my personal GP is considered an expert in this area, has written several books on the topic and has a website.

http://www.drquit.com