I dont have the hard copy of my results yet...but my Dr. told me I had 80 apneas per hr. but my oxygen level was good.
Does this give me a hint as to how severe my OSA is??

DB wrote:

I dont have the hard copy of my results yet...but my Dr. told me I had 80 apneas per hr. but my oxygen level was good.
Does this give me a hint as to how severe my OSA is??

Hi,

80 apnoeas per hour puts you in the severe category.

Mild up to 15
Moderate 16 - 30
Severe 30 +.

Daniel.


_________________
The untreated Sleep Apnoea sufferer died quietly in his sleep.......
Unlike his three passengers who died screaming !!!!!!

(Anon)

I have the same issue and wondered the same thing.  I did my sleep test just last night and the tech mentioned that my apnea index was 59, but my O2 never dropped below 93%.  He said this was unusual.   I'll be interested to hear what the doc says.
My guess right now is it might be related to my incessant scuba diving.  I can hold my breath free diving for nearly 3 minutes.  And I use about 1/2 the average amount of air when on scuba (I can get 70 minutes on a an 80cf tank).  So maybe I'm just efficient at O2 use....
He woke me up after 3 hours and put on the CPAP (nose pillows, not a mask).  I had very little problem adjusting to breathing with it (again, maybe scuba experience helps?) fell asleep pretty easily, and the end result was my apnea index dropped to 3, with my 02 sats never below 97%.
I look forward to seeing the results in detail in a week or two, and even more to trying out CPAP long term.

Toren wrote:

I have the same issue and wondered the same thing.  I did my sleep test just last night and the tech mentioned that my apnea index was 59, but my O2 never dropped below 93%.  He said this was unusual.   I'll be interested to hear what the doc says.
My guess right now is it might be related to my incessant scuba diving.  I can hold my breath free diving for nearly 3 minutes.  And I use about 1/2 the average amount of air when on scuba (I can get 70 minutes on a an 80cf tank).  So maybe I'm just efficient at O2 use....
He woke me up after 3 hours and put on the CPAP (nose pillows, not a mask).  I had very little problem adjusting to breathing with it (again, maybe scuba experience helps?) fell asleep pretty easily, and the end result was my apnea index dropped to 3, with my 02 sats never below 97%.
I look forward to seeing the results in detail in a week or two, and even more to trying out CPAP long term.

That's an interesting theory.  I'm also a scuba diver and I usually get in 3-4 tanks a week (except for the winter).  I'm a big guy -- 6'6, 270 -- but I'm really good on air for my size (i'm usually the last one to run low).  My ahi was 34 but my O2 only dropped below 90% once (and it was only 89%).  Anyone know if this makes sense?

sleepydog wrote:

That's an interesting theory.  I'm also a scuba diver and I usually get in 3-4 tanks a week (except for the winter).  I'm a big guy -- 6'6, 270 -- but I'm really good on air for my size (i'm usually the last one to run low).  My ahi was 34 but my O2 only dropped below 90% once (and it was only 89%).  Anyone know if this makes sense?

I'm 6'3" and 250, so my SAC (surface air consumption) of 0.4 is considered pretty good for my size as well.  I use both SCUBA and a rebreather.
I'm curious if there is anything to my theory, too.  Is the Great Master SleepyDave out there...?  

Hi Toren:
No masters around here, only me!

I'd wait and get the rest of the results.  Yeah, a little strange on the preliminary report that the lowest sat is 93%.  A desaturation is 4%, so that's really cutting it close.  But events vary by duration, by how much the airway occludes-- you may just have a bunch of RERAs, which are arousals or breaks in sleep continuity by relatively minor airway occlusions.

They even vary by scoring criteria, desaturations need not be present in scoring events in the non-Medicare scoring rules.

Interesting thoughts re: the diving, I don't know the answer to that.  If you have a bunch of frank apneas, that might be a great topic to explore.  If you're only having lesser obstructions, like hypopneas or RERAs, then maybe not so much.

But everything's a guess at this point, let's see what the reports show.

But let me add this.  There's maybe three things that create problems when you have OSA.  The desaturations and the wretching against a closed airway will contribute to all of the cardiovascular problems like high blood pressure and risk of stroke, and the arousals or breaks in sleep continuity cause the excessive daytime sleepiness.  So even if free diving (I don't think SCUBA makes a difference) training affords some measure of desaturation buffer, you still got a couple of other issues to deal with.
Write back.
sleepydave

Thanks for your thoughts!  The scuba idea was just that, an idea....
I've very anxious to get my complete results and get on CPAP.  The tech told me to "be proactive" since my case was severe so I've been calling the sleep center, and they told me "probably next week."