tara, prairemom - resp question

boyohboyohboy wrote: I posted that my husband has to get a bi pap machine. I have not seen them in years but they used to be really noisey, and also have an alarm to wake the person who was sleeping, or not breathing to alert them to breath....have they improved these much?
and if he uses it now, does that mean its going to be needed forever or can you retrain yourself to stop sleep apnea?
he had his sleep study done last weekend.

Farelle replied: My husband just got one wbout 3-4 months ago and its hardly bigger than an alram clock. The only cumbersome part is the tubing. Even the mask looks small. He's doing well with it and it's not that noisy. I don't know if it has an alarm, it's never gone off if it does. As far as needing it forever....I imagine a floow-up sleep study could be done sometime in the future to see how much they've improved. My husband has severe obstructive sleep apnea and his O2 would go down to 85% at night.....so I imagine he'll always need his, but who knows, maybe after so much time he'll re-train himself to breathe properly...? I'llhave to look that up. Good luck!!

Kaitlin'smom replied: I know a couple people who have them and my husband is also supposed to get one. I worry about the nose as well and everyone tells me they cant hear it, they are suposly pretty quite and I dont think they have alarms anymore they just are suppose to force the air in to make them breeth. Those who have it said once they got used to it, they sleep so much better.

PrairieMom replied: The machines they have now are really nice and quiet. It also depends on how much pressure he needs, the more pressure, the louder they are. KWIM? As for the alarms, there are lots of different models out there, you probably just have one that doesn't have alarms. I haven't seen a home machine that does.

I don't know about if he will need it forever or not, it depends on why he needs it in the first place. if he is over weight, and has a short fat neck causing him to obstruct his breathing weight loss might help him, but some people just quit breathing at night, and if he is one of those he may need it for forever. It also depends on how bad his apnea is.

Do you know what his settings are? maybe that would help me with more information for you. also, does he need to have oxygen added to it?

PrairieMom replied:
85 really isn't that bad. so don't give up hope. The guidelines here are 88, so he is only off by 3. I have seen people at 50's and 60's.

boyohboyohboy replied: we are waiting for a call back to set up the whole thing. i was just asking in advance. he is over weight right now, and does have a short fat neck as you described, he is a truck driver and they said he might also be suffering from shift work something or other..
I also heard that now it uses a nose piece like a canula instead of a mask is that right?
once i get all the info on settings and pressure i will send it and ask you again.
thank you

PrairieMom replied:
yeah, they have this thing called nasal air, which is like a cannula, only a LOT fatter. It has 2 tubes that sit just inside the nostrils. My patients seem more comfortable wearing that kind of mask.

boyohboyohboy replied: tara maybe you could just come over and grab him by the tip of his nose and tip his head back far enough to keep his air way open so he cant snore and he can breath, just for the next three months or so , so i can get some sleep until the baby comes...
i mean you do work nights right?

PrairieMom replied:
Okay. deal.
Although, when my patients don't breath I usually put a breathing tube in their airway and hook them up to life support.
Hopefully this bipap will work for him. It will take a bit to get used to it, but those that stick it out swear by them.

Farelle replied: I agree, 85 is not that bad but at work I'd be putting my patient on 02 for sure!!! The scarier part is how many times they told him he would stop breathing in an hour before he got it!!! He's lucky he made it this far!!

PrairieMom replied:
oh you'd be surprised how bad things can get. Us RT's don't get worked up until we see low 80's. I agree tho, that 85 is a bit low.

Farelle replied:

So do you find that people can wean themselves off the cpap after a period of time or are they stuck with it forever? I've never given much thought to how long people use them for, but I usually see them used by people who are much older and with many more healt issues than my husband. Although lately it seems like EVERYONE needs one....is it the new in thing??

PrairieMom replied:
I don't know about weaning off a cpap. It depends on why the person is wearing it in the first place. Is it a post op thing and the person is still weak from surgery? is it due to obesity? maybe then, but if it is due to lung disease, than maybe not. KWIM?
I think more people have the machines because less people with apnea are going undiagnosed.

Danalana replied: My mother has sleep apnea. She did the sleep study, and they sent her home with a cpap order. she just couldn't stand it...they tried different masks and stuff, but she just wouldn't stick it out. it's frustrating to me that she just gave up...she has oxygen problems anyway...we went to the ER once and her level was 78. and she was awake

PrairieMom replied:
thats not good. She should try it again. Sleep apnea can lead to heart problems. The machines do take a lot of getting used to, but IMO its worth it for a longer lived life.

Danalana replied: I think so, too, and I explained it to her. She thinks she's been through enough...

Danalana replied: well, i think so too, and i expressed that to her. she has a lot of other problems, though, and I guess she feels like she has been through enough...

Farelle replied: My husband is only 39 and he was diagnosed last year with severe obstructve sleep apnea. He does good with the mask, although he does have to sleep in the other room bc I am a light sleeper and need all the sleep I can get with two kids to take care of!! I'm hoping that he won't need it forever, but I am kind of getting used to having this king sized bed all to myself!!