CPAP and Ear Tubes

I have been using a CPAP since October. I have had my ups and downs with it. I started out with the Wisp mask. I am a major allergy sufferer and the allergies really kicked my butt. The wisp was uncomfortable to wear during the times I was dealing with major allergy symptoms. I know the logical solution would have been to get a full face mask but I didn't have the money, so I ordered a nasal pillows mask. The nasal pillows work great and seem to blast right through the congestion in just a few minutes. I am happy with my #'s using the nasal pillows too. Things finally have gotten "normal" with my cpap routine. Until yesterday of course...I saw an ENT about problems I have been having with my ear. She added another allergy medicine to the mix and scheduled allergy testing. She also scheduled a procedure for April 3rd to drain the fluid from one ear and add in a tube. Of course the appointment went so fast I didn't even consider cpap being an issue. so now I'm here to ask. Is the tube going to cause a cpap issue, like leak increasing or air coming out of my ear?

You must tell your MD about your Cpap and it's very important that the surgeon and anesthetist know about your OSA ahead of time. Talk to your MD about possibly needing to have your machihe (and mask) available post surg. - in the Recovery Rm and your own room if you'll be admitted.

Julie,

The ENT knows about the sleep apnea. We just did not discuss potential issues with it after the ear procedure. Due to the sleep apnea, it was her recommendation to do the procedure under local anesthetic only. The procedure will be done while I am awake in her office with no general anesthesia or sleepy type meds used.

Well then you need to talk to her in any case.... hope it goes well and you feel better fast!

Make it a POINT to discuss your CPAP vs the ear tubes, beforehand!
Even the best doctor might be caught wearing blinders . . .

Yes, I definitely plan to discuss it with her before the procedure I am not looking forward to being awake! I have just had all weekend to think on it and was hoping someone here may have had a similar situation before.

I have had multiple PE tubes, however none while I was on xpap. Your ears are conected to your sinus by way of the eustachian tubes. PE stands for pressure equalization. While equalizing my eustachian tubes by holding my nose and forcing air through the eustachian tube, I could get air to pass through the PE Tubes. You possibly could get air and fluids through the PE tubes using cpap. You will need to consult your ENT doc to get a definitive answer. I can say since I have been using my xpap my sinuses and ears have never been so good. If I had known how well my sinuses, etc would be, I would have used xpap specifically for that reason!

Your problem and the upcoming surgery is not something we have seen discussed on this forum all that much so there's probably not a lot of past experience from people to draw upon and even if there were some it wouldn't necessarily be the best choice for you in your situation.

I would for sure talk to the doctor about what to do after the surgery in terms of cpap use. There is the potential for the cpap air pressure to go up the nose and into the Eustachian tubes and make its way to the inner ear if the Eustachian tubes don't stay closed. Would it affect the ear tube??? Dunno and I wouldn't want to risk it myself. I would be talking with the doctor about how to handle cpap post surgery and for how long.