Top Topics
You can use the humidifier without any water in it and it won't cause any damage. That would be my suggestion in your case. You may get best results by running it in manual mode so you can set the tube temp to max while keeping the humidifier temp to a minimum. It sounds very much like you have a condensation issue. And if you use the sock with the heated tube it should improve its efficiency.
The instructions usually tell you to wash the mask every day. For most people this is unnecessary. The mask only needs to be washed often enough to keep it clean to a level that you are happy to use. It DOES NOT need to be sterile. For most people washing once a week is adequate. Washing every day will make your mask wear out faster. Also, you should only use luke-warm water as hot water will also decrease the life of the cushion. A useful alternative to washing can be baby wipes. Not those stupidly expensive CPAP wipes, which are a complete con, but simple, cheap, alcohol free (which is just about all of them these days) baby wipes. They are quite handy for cleaning during the week between washes. In the end it's all down to you. You need to balance the cleanliness you require from your mask with how often you want to replace it.
Of course, in your case you may have one of the flimsier mask designs. What kind of mask do you use?
An AHI of 50+ would usually be considered severe. Anything over 30 is severe. Having said that, I've seen AHIs of 200 odd.
The ramp is simply for comfort. If you are falling asleep OK it won't help you.
It sounds like you have researched it well. I certainly wish you every success with your surgery. I'm in favour of anything that effectively manages sleep apnoea.
I was referring mostly to all surgeries used for treating OSA, but in particular the maxilla-mandibular advancement.
I have seen exactly the problem you describe first hand, and in each case it was caused by condensation. Turn your humidifier down one notch and see if this helps. If it is still happening, turn it down one more. It could be something else, but condensation is by far your most likely culprit.
Actually, while you are awake your breathing is far more erratic that when you are asleep and, as your machine cannot tell if you are awake or asleep, this certainly can cause an increase in your AHI.
You say this happened on 2 nights out of a fortnight. What is your AHI the rest of the time? This certainly warrants investigation. It may be that you were on your back for those 2 nights and this made your OSA worse. If this is the case you either have to prevent yourself from lying on your back or increase your pressure to handle sleeping in your back. An AHI of 24 is certainly quite high.
Obstructive sleep apnoea happens in your throat, not your nose. If the problem was only in your nose you would open your mouth and it would go away. It is possible to treat OSA with positional therapy, but I've never heard of a commercial device that you can't make just as well yourself for a fraction of the cost. Experiment a bit.
