36.6 AHI with CPAP machine

I'll turn the EPR off for tonight.

Effexor XR 150mg for about two and a half years... One pill usually taken around 5:30 pm. I quit cold turkey... I know, it's not good. I also take 50mg Lamotrigine in the morning. Been doing for about six months.

For about three weeks in August I was using one of those steroid inhaler things after quitting Effexor for anxiety and breathing. Up to 4 times a day. I quit doing that about ten days back (after these numbers started) because I was concerned it was making things worse. No other changes in medication, prescribed or recreational.

I don't hold much hope for turning off EPR making much of a difference but it won't hurt to try.

So I just read about what a central sleep apnea is and it sounds both right on and discouraging. I've long felt that, even during the day... I "forget to breathe." During the day my body will occasionally just gasp in a giant breath and I realize that maybe I wasn't breathing "correctly."

"Central sleep apnea occurs because your brain doesn't send proper signals to the muscles that control your breathing. This condition is different from obstructive sleep apnea, in which you can't breathe normally because of upper airway obstruction."

What I find discouraging about this is that it sounds like a CPAP machine isn't meant to address this problem? Am I wrong on that?

When you get a chance post that zoomed in image PR requested.
No, CPAP is probably not the best of choices for central apnea but it's really odd that you didn't have any problems with centrals this numerous until recently.

An occasional central is no big deal and doesn't qualify for the diagnosis or worrying.

looks like his apnea has been predominately central most of the time, just not a lot of them except for occasional instances. (I see more purple than blue on the overview)

Here's a zoomed in... I think... look around the time requested.

http://imgur.com/a/HfAw9

I'm looking at the clear airway events during that time... It's like almost every minute, twice a minute. 10-16 seconds each time... I'm not waking up though. However, during that time was sleep is anxious if that makes any sense.

Can you zoom in closer....like a 4 to 5 minute window so we can see the flow rate better?

you ask for 10 minutes, they give you 50.

that said, it doesn't like like CSR to me, so that's good.

Isn't the AirSense supposed to flag CSR anyway?
I have yet to see a report with CSR from a ResMed machine.
I can't tell about potential CSR with a 50 minute segment. I gotta look closer.

Pugsy wrote:Isn't the AirSense supposed to flag CSR anyway?
I have yet to see a report with CSR from a ResMed machine.

it is supposed to, yes.

Pugsy wrote: I can't tell about potential CSR with a 50 minute segment. I gotta look closer.

yup :taps foot:

Pugsy wrote:Can you zoom in closer....like a 4 to 5 minute window so we can see the flow rate better?

Here you go. Still learning to use this software. Thanks again for the help.

http://imgur.com/a/pxuuQ

I think turning the EPR off is certainly worth a try.

there's no waxing of the breaths, just waning, and based on the flow during FOT, I'd say they are centrals as flagged, and legit ones.

maybe excessive co2 blowoff.

palerider wrote:I think turning the EPR off is certainly worth a try.

there's no waxing of the breaths, just waning, and based on the flow during FOT, I'd say they are centrals as flagged, and legit ones.

maybe excessive co2 blowoff.

For a newb like me... what does that mean? The waxing and waning? What is the flow rate in general? I see the graph for those five minutes but I'm not sure what I'm looking at there. Whatever it is, it looks like steady pattern to me.

palerider wrote:maybe excessive co2 blowoff.

Yeah...but why now and of this magnitude now just recently? It just doesn't compute logically.

Let's see if lightening strikes and we get lucky turning off EPR. If we do I am running out and getting a Powerball ticket.
It's worth trying though.

I wish I knew more about the impact of those meds on respiration...and the coming off of the Effexor.
And why again...the last half of the night ? I am not content with the "it just happens" explanation.

I have a headache. I want to go to bed but we are having thunder boomers right now. Not conducive to good sleep at the moment.

vintagepimpage wrote: Here you go. Still learning to use this software.

Thank you. That helps a lot. Yeah, learning the software takes a bit of time but it doesn't take long and you will have it all figured out.

Do you have the provider/clinical manual for your machine?
If not you can get it here and in it they go into a brief explanation about CSR flagging. I think you can see what we were looking for but your breathing doesn't really look like classic CSR (at least to me)...and that's a good thing that it doesn't.
https://sleep.tnet.com/home/files/resme ... -guide.pdf