Need help in understanding Sleepyhead data

Could someone please explain to me the difference between leaks and total leaks
Thanks

Min Avg 90% Max
Leaks 0.00 9.11 18.00 33.00
Total Leaks 24.00 50.58 63.00 72.00

I'll be watching for the replies you get. Just download Sleepyhead today.
Atm, the information is overwhelming.

Starlette

Let me explain using my report as an example
SleepyHead shows 2 leak lines...One is total leak (so this includes vent rate.) this is the top leak line...second line is excess leak (vent rate removed) and is the bottom leak line.. Since we don't have a true mask setting to allow for vent rates per each mask the machine does some fancy math using a baseline to come up with these figures. Please don't ask me to prove it. I can't. From past experiments it appears that a fix number is not used. That is why I think it does some math each night based on how things first start out when chance of leak is much less.

So for me on this night my "Leaks" line is the excess leak line...bottom line graph
Total Leaks line is the total leak which is vent rate plus excess leak...top line in graph

Minimum is the lowest leak and will often be 0.00 on the bottom line
Average is just an overall average
90% means for 90% of the time I was AT OR Below this number
Maximum is the highest point of my leak rate.
So you get 2 separate set of leak numbers.

Edit: Respironics doesn't seem to flag a Large Leak (bad enough to impair therapy) until we get close to 90 L/min total leak (top line). With SH software scale sometimes the leak line looks worse than it is. We need to watch the scale.

Pugsy, thanks for this, I'd been wondering this too as I get used to SleepyHead.

So, would it be correct to say that, in general, the line to "worry" about (in terms of therapeutic efficacy) is the lower line?

RocketGirl wrote:So, would it be correct to say that, in general, the line to "worry" about (in terms of therapeutic efficacy) is the lower line?

Yep, that is what I do. In Encore Pro 2.4 and 2.5 we have an option to display leak as Total Leak or Unintentional (excess) Leak. I always preferred Unintentional when I used Pro. Just remember that the Large Leak number to avoid will also be lower. I never could figure out exactly where it would be flagged when using Unintentional Leak. I think somewhere around 65 or 70 L/min if using the lower line.
I haven't had one flagged since using SLeepyHead software.

Even if I did have a Large Leak...unless it is prolonged in time..I don't worry about it much. A few short spikes is not going to really make much of an impact.

Thank you very much Pugsy for explaining for me.

I think we need a sleepy head tutorial. The User guide has a lot of information but I suspect people aren't reading it. I would like to do it with the help of other member just starting using SH and not understanding what they see.

How about if I start a thread for SH questions so that I can compose comments that will make things easier for new people to see how wonderful SH is. Fist thread will be rough but we can polish it up and perhaps just keep it bumped to front page..WHat do you think. Will you help me? It's hard for me to think up questions but give me questions and I will do the composing and you all tell me if it is enough or need more.

Any one want to help?

Pugsy wrote:I think we need a sleepy head tutorial. The User guide has a lot of information but I suspect people aren't reading it. I would like to do it with the help of other member just starting using SH and not understanding what they see.

How about if I start a thread for SH questions so that I can compose comments that will make things easier for new people to see how wonderful SH is. Fist thread will be rough but we can polish it up and perhaps just keep it bumped to front page..WHat do you think. Will you help me? It's hard for me to think up questions but give me questions and I will do the composing and you all tell me if it is enough or need more.

Any one want to help?

I hope you do a tutorial. I overwhelmed! Thank you thank you thank you!!!!

stacyrings wrote:
I hope you do a tutorial. I overwhelmed! Thank you thank you thank you!!!!

I will do it. What I will start is a thread requestion specifics on what people want be explained in general terms so they understand what they are seeing.

For me to explain...I need questions to see what it is that people don't understand.

So I will start a thread asking that people ask questions about SH...then I can compose. I don't compose well without impetus.. Something I think of as second nature I would probably not think to mention.

Pugsy, I would love to see you do that, yay! It is indeed overwhelming to review.
One thing I love is that I can put my own comments in there too.
An idea Pugsy, can you put it up there in the announcement section.
I find that this upcoming new thread would be invaluable to a newbie and to those of us wanting to interpret what we see.
Also gives immediate exposure to the software.

Starlette

Starlette wrote:An idea Pugsy, can you put it up there in the announcement section.

I don't have access to create permanent posts in the sticky section. Forum administrator would have to do it.. Move it to the top if they felt it was justified. If not. We can keep it bump to the front page of the forum. If I can walk a fine line with explaining stuff and not "treat" stuff we might could find a place at the SleepyHead wiki to put it. We want to explain the information but avoid treating or changing things in the tutorial itself. We don't want anyone saying we are playing doctor. We can do that somewhere else.
Tutorial will be how to use it and what the data means in general.

I have started the thread to ask for questions.. I have a headache now so probably will do more tomorrow but I think I can get the glossary together shortly.

Pugsy, just noticed that my details don't list Total Leaks, just has Leaks, wonder why?

I quite agree. I've used a cpap for 8 years and just got a new cpap with data etc. Being around here, I realize I am totally ignorant. I know to get healthy and stay healthy, I have to understand the whys and wherefores. I mean I understand what sleep apnea is, how it happens and how harmful that can be. Actually, I saw firsthand how bad it can be. My brother passed away two years ago at the age of 51 and I know that some of that was due to his weight but a lot was due to severe, severe sleep apnea. I don't think he would have lived another month if we hadn't finally talked him into going to the er. He was admitted to the hospital and they got the ball rolling with the sleep apnea. It gave him 9 or 10 more years of life and I'm grateful for that. After my first sleep study, they gave me a quick rundown but never really explained the data or anything. The doctor actually showed me the data and explained the data but there was so much, I really couldn't take it in. It wasn't good, that was for sure. I want to understand more about how I'm doing but you are right, the data offered by sleepyhead is way out my reach of what I can currently understand.

Starlette wrote:I'll be watching for the replies you get. Just download Sleepyhead today.
Atm, the information is overwhelming.

Starlette

bump

DoriC wrote:Pugsy, just noticed that my details don't list Total Leaks, just has Leaks, wonder why?

I have no idea.
I thought it was because S9 machines already subtract vent rate but now as I look at old VPAP report from before christmas I see same 2 lines in leak graph.

Which SleepyHead version are you using?
You might want to mention this over in Jedimarks new Version thread.