Leakage VS AHI connection?

I have noticed that my AHI is always lower when Oscar calls out Large Leak percentage. The leak exceeded the upper threshold for 40 minutes and I got an AHI of 5.7- am all time low for me. I have several new mask styles that I need to try. Thanks

If leaks are bad enough then the machine might be unable to sense, record or respond to apnea events while the big leak is going on.

Means that any low AHI may not be accurate due to the machine simply not recording apnea events because the leak was so bad the machine was clueless.

Depending on how bad the large leak was during the 40 minutes of leak....it wouldn't be impossible to have a truck load of apnea events occur. 4 or 5 minutes in large leak probably not that big of a deal but 40 or 50 or more minutes....could potentially be a big deal with the number of apnea events that happen but we just don't know that they happened. It's kinda important to know if the apnea events are occurring.

You are right of course- almost no apneas in that period [actually about 30 min] - I have a dreamwear 'kit' that I will give a try, getting better at mouth taping so maybe a nasal mask will work. Thank you, Gene

I am trying to get back on the CPAP horse [hose?] while doing Cardiac rehab 3 days a week. I have trouble with my hips getting tired/hurting which is a problem that I associate with the sleep apnea issues, while I was on cpap i would have days that my hips bothered me to the point of wondering how I was going to get to my car and the next day I could walk around with no issues at all. I tried the eclipse halo system last night and never got to sleep until I switched back to a full face mask. I tape my mouth with no problem and try to keep my tongue against the roof of my mouth and would get a burp of air on one or both cheeks [ballooning] and have to expel it. It seemed very random and don't remember anyone mentioning it? What am I doing wrong? I think this system would work well for me if I could get beyond this problem. Thanks Gene

That ballooning -- aka chipmunk cheeks -- is a common problem. Do you give a little swallow or suck after you position your tongue? That helps to keep your tongue in place when you relax into sleep. I found that practicing the tongue thing during the day really helped me get over the ballooning problem.