First sleep test AHI 18.8, second one AHI <2?

Mogy wrote: ↑

Wed May 09, 2018 12:27 pm

The OP has been diagnosed with a narrow airway? I didn't see that.

Most people with obstructive sleep apnea have some type of narrowing of the throat.

Even if you have a narrow airway, losing weight will still probably reduce your AHI.

Often, losing weight causes flappy skin that has stretched and doesn't get smaller when you lose weight. Flappy tissue in the throat would NOT be helpful for sleep apnea.
Many people have found that their pressure needs go UP when they lose weight.

Throat/exercise has been shown to reduce sleep apnea.

Please post the studies that prove this. Most of us have yet to see anything that would prove this theory.

I can't say I know anything about a narrow throat. I imagine it could be because of excess fat or skin.
So you lose weight and your skin inside your throat becomes more floppy. That sounds plausible. I think that it becomes more important to exercise then.
Regardless of that, the studies have been done that show sleep apnea is reduced when you lose weight, exercise regularly and/or do the throat exercises.
Weight loss:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/11122588/
Quote from study:
"RESULTS: Relative to stable weight, a 10% weight gain predicted an approximate 32% (95% confidence interval [CI], 20%-45%) increase in the AHI. A 10% weight loss predicted a 26% (95% CI, 18%-34%) decrease in the AHI."

General/cardio exercise:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4216726
Quote from study:
"The effect of exercise training on our primary outcome, AHI, was assessed by using two approaches. First, the pre-to postintervention analysis of five studies (six cohorts) showed a pooled estimate of mean change in AHI of −6.27 events/h (95 % CI −8.54 to −3.99; p < 0.001) with an I2=0% (Fig. 2), which reflected a 32 % reduction in AHI from baseline."

Tongue/throat exercise.
https://academic.oup.com/sleep/article/38/5/669/2416863
Quote from study:
"Current literature demonstrates that myofunctional therapy decreases AHI by approximately 50% in adults and 62% in children. Lowest oxygen saturation, snoring, and sleepiness outcomes improve in adults. Myofunctional therapy could serve as an adjunct to other OSA treatments."

Mogy wrote: ↑

Wed May 09, 2018 6:50 pm

I can't say I know anything about . . .

We agree.

Indeed the studies you point to, in harmony with the collective literature, indicate what little effect those approaches have on helping the majority of those diagnosed with OSA.

It is my opinion that your repeatedly making posts claiming otherwise is highly misleading, despite your good intentions, sir.

Mogy wrote: ↑

Wed May 09, 2018 12:27 pm

Even if you have a narrow airway, losing weight will still probably reduce your AHI.
Gerneral exercise has been shown to reduce sleep apnea.
Throat/exercise has been shown to reduce sleep apnea.
This is not false hope. It has been proven.

Why don't you go peddle your bullshit somewhere that they're looking for fertilizer.

Mogy wrote: ↑

Wed May 09, 2018 6:50 pm

I can't say I know anything.

ftfy.

Your post is now much more accurate.

Unfortunately, weight loss by either medical or surgical techniques, which often cures type 2 diabetes, has a beneficial effect on sleep apnea in only a minority of patients. -- Chest. 2017 Jul;152(1):194-203. doi: 10.1016/j.chest.2017.01.027. -- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28185772

After weight loss, achieving an apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) < 5 occurs in a minority of patients (5% to 30%). Persistent apnea with an AHI > 5 is observed in 70% to 95% of previously obese patients. While most physicians would agree that not all patients with AHI between 5 and 15 need treatment, they would also agree that those patients have a degree of OSA, that the patients should be aware of the condition, and that there is a need for periodic reassessment. By commonly accepted definitions, those patients have residual apnea. . . . The percentage of patients who will have persistent OSA after weight loss (apnea resulting from other factors) can be estimated by subtracting the percentage of obese patients who could potentially achieve apnea resolution (AHI < 5) from the percentage of obese patients we observed. . . . Persistent OSA would be observed in 82.3% to 94.1% of patients we diagnosed if all obese patients were able to become nonobese. -- "Apnea in the Nonobese--A Need for Awareness," Robert G. Hooper, MD, FCCP, Scottsdale, AZ, Copyright 2018 American College of Chest Physicians -- https://journal.chestnet.org/article/S0 ... 0139-9/pdf

Mogy wrote: ↑

Wed May 09, 2018 6:50 pm

I can't say I know anything about a narrow throat.

... and that shows your ignorance of obstructive sleep apnea runs very deep. You have disqualified yourself from offering advice to people who need help.

Indeed, the "O" in OSA stands for "obstructive." Therefore, it is impossible for someone to have OSA without a narrowing at some location in the airway during sleep.

jnk... wrote: ↑

Thu May 10, 2018 7:16 am

After weight loss, achieving an apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) < 5 occurs in a minority of patients (5% to 30%). Persistent apnea with an AHI > 5 is observed in 70% to 95% of previously obese patients. While most physicians would agree that not all patients with AHI between 5 and 15 need treatment, they would also agree that those patients have a degree of OSA, that the patients should be aware of the condition, and that there is a need for periodic reassessment. By commonly accepted definitions, those patients have residual apnea. . . . The percentage of patients who will have persistent OSA after weight loss (apnea resulting from other factors) can be estimated by subtracting the percentage of obese patients who could potentially achieve apnea resolution (AHI < 5) from the percentage of obese patients we observed. . . . Persistent OSA would be observed in 82.3% to 94.1% of patients we diagnosed if all obese patients were able to become nonobese. -- "Apnea in the Nonobese--A Need for Awareness," Robert G. Hooper, MD, FCCP, Scottsdale, AZ, Copyright 2018 American College of Chest Physicians -- https://journal.chestnet.org/article/S0 ... 0139-9/pdf

Thanks for linking to this article, JNK, it's very interesting and cites another informative article re weight and obstructive sleep apnea and is a reminder that yes, severe OSA can and does occur in so called "normal weight" people too.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5125984/

Mogy wrote: ↑

Wed May 09, 2018 6:50 pm

"RESULTS: Relative to stable weight, a 10% weight gain predicted an approximate 32% (95% confidence interval [CI], 20%-45%) increase in the AHI. A 10% weight loss predicted a 26% (95% CI, 18%-34%) decrease in the AHI."
Predicted

"The effect of exercise training on our primary outcome, AHI, was assessed by using two approaches. First, the pre-to postintervention analysis of five studies (six cohorts) showed a pooled estimate of mean change in AHI of −6.27 events/h (95 % CI −8.54 to −3.99; p < 0.001) with an I2=0% (Fig. 2), which reflected a 32 % reduction in AHI from baseline."
pooled estimate

"Current literature demonstrates that myofunctional therapy decreases AHI by approximately 50% in adults and 62% in children. Lowest oxygen saturation, snoring, and sleepiness outcomes improve in adults. Myofunctional therapy could serve as an adjunct to other OSA treatments."
adjunct to other OSA treatments

Just wanted to note some words that jumped out to me.