I had my sleep study done on Sept 7th. I found out today I need a CPAP. I will be picking it up on Monday afternoon. Hope all goes well.

Keep us posted on your progress, greg.  Adjusting to CPAP can take some time, and those of us who have been through it are here to help, if needed.

Good luck!

I asked for a copy of my test results. it says I have Severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea. Where can   I find out what normal readings should be? Sleep efficiency is 66.6%. AHI is 58/hr (down to 15.8/hr with CPAP) lowest SaO2 was 81. No REM sleep.Stage 2 at 77.9% Partial apneas Total for the first 4 hours was 160 and Longest Partial Apnea 40.2 sec.

Hi Greg!

Quote:

Sleep efficiency is 66.6%. AHI is 58/hr (down to 15.8/hr with CPAP) lowest SaO2 was 81. No REM sleep.Stage 2 at 77.9% Partial apneas Total for the first 4 hours was 160 and Longest Partial Apnea 40.2 sec.

Was this a split study (both diagnostic and CPAP on the same night)?
Normal sleep efficiency is at least 85%, and ideally like 95%, but a split study can mess that up.
For AHI, normal is <5, mild 5-14, moderate 15-30, severe >30.
Normal SaO2 is >94%.
REM sleep should compose about 20% of the study.
The goal of CPAP is to reduce the AHI to at least <5, but that 15.8 AHI with CPAP is probably a collection of all pressures, you need the summary to tell where your ideal pressure falls.
Those results are only a tiny part of the study, need the rest of the stuff to get a real good idea what happened.
sleepydave



Last edited by sleepydave on Thu Sep 22, 2005 11:21 pm; edited 1 time in total

The guidelines for qualifying sleep apnea as mild, moderate or severe really rest on 3 criteria: AHI, lowest desaturation and severity of EDS.  There is some variation in where the cutoffs are, but probably the best reference right now is from 1999 Sleep:

Quote:

The severity of sleep apnea can be categorized as mild, moderate, or severe on the basis of the apnea-hypopnea index. Mild sleep apnea is defined by an apnea-hypopnea index from 5 to 14, an oxygen saturation of at least 86%, and minimal daytime disability. Moderate sleep apnea is defined by an index from 15 to 30 or an oxygen saturation of 80% to 85% and significant work or social dysfunction due to drowsiness and loss of concentration. Severe sleep apnea is defined by an index greater than 30 or an oxygen saturation of 79% or less and incapacitation due to the sleep disorder.
AHI References from:
Flemons WW. Sleep-related breathing disorders in adults: recommendations for syndrome definition and measurement techniques in clinical research. Sleep 1999;22(5):667-89.

You really have to consider all three factors.  If your AHI is 28 but you desat to 60%, then severe may be a better description.  Similarly, if your AHI is 35 but you have no desats below 90%, then perhaps moderate would be a better description.
Although I think a wider moderate AHI range would better reflect these 3 factors, just to make sure that everybody's on the same page we'll use these AHI ranges to classify OSA in the mild, moderate and severe caregories.
sleepydave



Last edited by sleepydave on Sun Sep 25, 2005 11:12 am; edited 1 time in total

While we're at it, here's the level of sleepiness assessment from the 1999 paper, which quantifies EDS a little better:

Quote:

Mild:  Unwanted sleepiness or involuntary sleep episodes occur during activities that require little attention.  Examples include sleepiness that is likely to occur while watching television, reading, or traveling as a passenger.  Symptoms produce only minor impairment of social or occupational function.
Moderate:  Unwanted sleepiness or involuntary sleep episodes occur during activities that require some attention.  Examples include uncontrollable sleepiness that is likely to occur while attending activities such as concerts, meetings or presentations.  Symptoms produce moderate impairment of social or occupational function.
Severe:  Unwanted sleepiness or involuntary sleep episodes occur during activities that require more active attention.  Examples include uncontrollable sleepiness while eating, during conversation, walking, or driving.  Symptoms produce marked impairment in social or occupational function.

Flemons WW. Sleep-related breathing disorders in adults: recommendations for syndrome definition and measurement techniques in clinical research. Sleep 1999;22(5):667-89.

Last edited by sleepydave on Sat Sep 24, 2005 4:04 pm; edited 1 time in total

Yes, I did have a split sleep study in one night. The first four hours without CPAP and the second four hours with CPAP.
Thanks for all the info on sleep Apnea. It will help me understand all the medical info on the report.
I am finding the more I talk about sleep Apnea, the more people I find that have it. I wonder why they keep it such a secret? I wish I had known about it years ago, instead of just recently. So many more people could be helped if they only knew.