Newbie question on APAP pressure

Hi Everyone,

I was diagnosed with sleep apnea a few weeks back and was given a Somnobalance e APAP machine 2 days ago by the hospital for a trial run at home - since I can never get a deep sleep or the 'attack' happens right at the moment where I doze off (when the tounge muscles start to relax) when I have the apnea 'attack' sometimes I can sense/feel my inner tongue collapsing and blocking the air passage. My question is that after using the APAP machine for 2 nights I think that the air pressure produced is not enough to force open the blocked passage- I dont really know how the APAP/CPAP machine should work (as in the effect of the machine) - is this normal or should the pressure be strong enough for me to feel the 'force' of the airways (which is being blocked by the tounge/mucle) being open. Started my research on Google and bumped into this forum (already getting tons of info from it!).

thanks in advance

I'm a newbie to this forum and high tech CPAP analysis so I'm sure someone will have better advice. Most apneas are worse when sleeping on your back. I recommend you sleep as you did during the sleep study since that's what they used to setup your machine. Also, if you're prone to swelling, you may need to adjust your mask each night or get a different mask. Best to consult with your DME and doctor as your machine may be setup wrong (my doctor prescribed 11 but the DME said the report said 15 ). Good luck.

Hello Popperdoom,
Lets start with the basics. The cpap uses air as a splint to open your airway. When yo fall asleep your airway begins to relax eventually collapsing and closing off the windpipe so you can't breathe. If the cpap is adjusted properly enough pressure is produced to prevent your airway from collapsing .An air splint. The trick is getting the correct pressure and learning to tollerate the mask and breathing against the incomming air. You may try using tape to keep your mouth closed. Not masking tape, something easily removed. I keep mine so I can open my mouth if I need to puke or remove it rapidly. Give it some time and ask again.

popperdoom1971 wrote: dont really know how the APAP/CPAP machine should work (as in the effect of the machine) - is this normal or should the pressure be strong enough for me to feel the 'force' of the airways (which is being blocked by the tounge/mucle) being open.

It works more like a stint to keep the airway open. Sometimes different pressures are needed for different people. The pressure works more to keep things open instead of forcing collapsing tissues to open up.
It is normal to not feel a lot of "force" or pressure depending on the pressure setting and how quickly we adjust.
If the APAP range is set too low with a minimum of 4 (which is common) and a high maximum it is possible that the minimum pressure is too low to prevent the collapse and a higher minimum pressure might be needed.
I am not familiar with your machine at all. So I cannot advise on how to check what the pressure is.

pugsy,
A Somnobalance... somebody else was on here in the past week looking for how to change the pressure and how to get any data off it... don't think that they had any answers either... it's a Weimann I think. Seems to be a European maker.

Cflame, I think it was someone in Germany. And yes, no one knew anything about it. Just last week or so.

http://www.weinmann.de/fileadmin/weinma ... 411_en.pdf

Look what I found. Hope it is the right thing. It appears to be the clinician manual 68 pages.

Thanks everyone - only a few hours and already so many helpfull replies

I was originally set at 9, but felt like I was working too hard to "pull in" air.

So i requested sleep doc change to 10 which he resisted, but gave in to.

I think its an individual thing. Its important to remember that its not just apnea/snoring
youre trying to prevent, but that you need to get the right amount of air and comfort.

DavidCarolina wrote:I was originally set at 9, but felt like I was working too hard to "pull in" air.

So i requested sleep doc change to 10 which he resisted, but gave in to.

I think its an individual thing. Its important to remember that its not just apnea/snoring
youre trying to prevent, but that you need to get the right amount of air and comfort.

There could be something wrong with the settings on my unit- like I mentioned I dont feel the pressure is high enough to do anything, worst - using the unit makes me feel suffocated (at times I have to take the mask off to properly breath- it feels like the unit is blocking my breathing instead) and I've been waking up at night grasping for air.

Calling the technician/doctor first thing Monday.