NEW GUY Suggestions?

I am a new guy for sure my equipment doesn't arrive until Feb. 15. I was sleep tested in Dec. I had no pressures taken at that time. They just confirmed by thoughts that I had sleep apnea. It is in the middle of the moderate range. I deceided the second test for pressures were just me donating a couple thousand to Doctor whoevers IRA. So I ordered a BiPaP Auto machine with a humitifier, the software with reader and the Ultra Mirage FF Mask. Now I have no idea what to do next. I figure I will read the manual and go from there. I have a full beard and mustache, will I have to remove the facial hair to get a good seal on the mask? Can I sleep on my side. I always do. Have never been able to sleep on my back, maybe due to me apnea. I figured I would leave the machine at the default settings for the first night and then see what happens. After a couple nights if ok look at the results of what the software is saying to adjust or not. Any advice from the experience one on this forum?

OK, the important stuff first: facial hair can definitely stay - maybe. If you titrate at low pressure, the leak rate will be low enough. If you require high pressures, it may be a problem. The software will let you know about the leak rate. The AHI reporting and auto functions will quit if the leak rate is too high.

Side sleeping is no problem with the Ultra Mirage FF mask.

I'd recommend going slow with the pressure though and gradually increase from night to night. You'll acclimate to the machine a lot easier that way. Plus, there are a lot of possible adjustments, such as Bi-Flex and if you choose it, which level. More importantly, there are also a few possible negative effects you might encounter on your way to higher pressure, such as central apneas and aerophagia, for instance. Central apneas will probably not be accommodated well by the machine. The machine will give you non-responsive markers but you'll have to figure things out afterward. You might not encounter aerophagia, but I did, and I assure you that it can be extremely painful and it gets progressively worse with increasing pressure. If you take pressure increases gradually, this shouldn't be a problem.

Good luck and welcome to your new adventure.

Regards,
Bill

New Guy,

You should have a copy of your sleep study with the diagnosis of moderate sleep apnea. How were your O2 desats? PLMS? What is your AHI? What is the breakdown? What does it say about your sleep architecture?

With all that information in hand, you will be able to make more intelligent decisions regarding your therapy.

New Guy, how did you get the prescription to buy a machine? Since you weren't titrated, but were only told "middle of moderate pressure", a BiPap might be a major overkill (imo).

I would be very careful about your starting pressure. Very careful.

My sleep study showed 7 apneas and 94 hypopneas for 101 events or an index of 21.1 events per hour. The report states there were desaturations especially when in supine sleep during REM sleep. I had a 68.9% sleep efficiency of which Stage 1 was 41.7%, Stage 2 39.1%, Stage 3 12.3%, REM 6.8%.
The study recommended a CPaP or BiPaP machine. You can purchase a BiPaP Auto machine with a prescription without Titration be completed. I went over this with my family Doctor. The Titration test was another $2000 on top of the $1400 for the first sleep study. Therefore, I could buy this machine that maybe overkill but has IMO flexibility and still have spent less than paying for the Titration test. The sleep study center did not seem to want me to be very educated about the different types of machines. That sent up a red flag to me, so I studied up on the different types and tried to make an educated decsion. My family Doctor currently treats several sleep apnea patiences. He had never heard of the BiPap Auto with the smart card. He wants me to show him the reports. His patiences bring in their machines and based on their input to the doctor he adjusts pressures as needed. The doctor is now looking at getting this machine to help him with his patiences.

Very nice NewGuy. Sounds like you have it under control. Plus it's nice your doctor is showing an interest and learning more about machines, software, etc.

that's gotta make you feel good.