Need some help.....

I have a re-titration study on June 15th. The lab called and wanted me to bring any data that I have with me to get a better idea of what they are looking for. I started to compile all of it and noticed something that I hadn't noticed before.

1) My pressure has steadily risen over the last 6 months from a low of 14 to a high of 17 in APAP mode to a low of 17 to a high of 20 where some nights that it stays there for 10% of the night. This runs in cycles as well but the pressure has steadily gone up.

2) AHI has decreased over the last 4 months going from 4 to 1

3) All of this corresponds to my atral fib episode in January. The pressure started to really go up and the AHI started to come down just after this.

4) NRI and leak rate are very good the entire time. Two nights of a high leak rate and one night that the NRI was .5 events/hour.


Now my questions

Will they automatically switch me to a bi-pap if needed? The pressure going to 20 and staying there for 48 minutes (10% of approximately 8 hours sleep) some nights makes me wonder if there might be a need for yet a higher pressure. I am hoping that this happens while I am there.

Should I be concerned about the pressure/AHI difference?

Can I take my own mask or should I just use one of theirs?

Allen

It LOOKS like the higher pressure range is doing a better job for you. You MAY be put on a bi-pap during the re-titration.

If they asked to look at your data, I would mention this (the possibility of a bi-pap) when they are looking at it.

I did a re- titration a couple of years ago and took my own mask. You could do that, or take the opportunity to try one you might want to consider getting.

Allen476,
I'm a sleep tech. I always prefer a patient to bring his or her mask for a couple of reasons. First, I want to see how it fits and if the leak is okay. The other reason is I want the patient to be comfortable. With a retitration, a person usually has the mask they want or is at least used to it. Even if you want to try something different, take your mask anyway.
The sleep tech you have should be happy to show you a few different masks.

As far as BiPAP...it depends on the doctor you have. Some are more for it while some are not. You should ask about that one too.

Good Luck!

Thanks. During my initial titration I wasn't given a choice about masks. They put one on me and that was what they used for the first 3 hours until the leaks were uncontrollable. I now know that one was a Comfortfull (I remembered what it looked like) and the replacement one that they put on was still a FFM but I have yet to see it since. Since I use pillows, I might see what they have to try, but I am going to take my Swift LT anyways. I was curious if they would make me use their mask again or if I could use mine.

The Bi-Pap is what I am the most concerned about. Since my pressure has gone to 20 and stayed there for longer periods, I am curious if they would use it if needed or only use it if the doctor has ordered it. I might call up there Monday to find out. Worse case is that I would have to have the doctors office send a revised order to them.

This whole thing has me just as upset as the day I went in for my initial titration. I looked at the reports once a week but never gave the trend a thought until I started consolidating over 200 pages of data into a spreadsheet. Now that I see the data on one page, it has me concerned.

Allen

It's less of a hassle for the sleep tech to use your mask. Trust me, they won't mind if you want to use yours. Just tell them you know to be careful of the wires when you put on your mask.

You can still bring up the possibility of trying a different mask. If they say they only have FFM, I'd bring it up with the doctor at your next visit. They should be more helpful than that.

However, if you want to go with old faithful, your swift, go for it. I think that is a very good mask. That's what I use at home.

Let us know how it goes.