Apnea/CPAP?

Everything else
81

There are a lot of wires involved checking eye movement, leg movement, etc. They hung a lanyard around my neck too in the lab that must have weighed ten pounds there were so many wires on it. :)

What CPAP machine are you using? I have the ResMed Airsense 10. I have to say the technology in these things is pretty amazing.

I use distilled water for my humidifier when I am home but regular tap water when I travel. I clean everything once a week using soap and water. I use white vinegar in the water tank once a month (though since i use mainly distilled water not sure if i really need to use the vinegar since that is mostly to dissolve any mineral buildup and distilled water shouldn’t have any minerals).

82

My CPAP machine is a Philips Respironics System One. And I use Brita-filtered water at home and distilled when I travel. :-)

83

Trying to find distilled water especially when I do not rent a car can be a bit of a burden for a quick trip. Kudos to you for being able to use it! :)

84

I got the bill back for the sleep study, if anyone was curious as to the cost. I swear we got a previous bill for $350 or so, I suspect that might have just been the fee for the doctor reviewing the results and reporting on them. The actual study was over $3,000. Insurance will cover just over half of that, and then my wife’s job will reimburse for a decent chunk, but still. Good grief.

85

Has anyone had any experience with the new implant treatment for obstructive sleep apnea? They are now flooding the radio (haven’t seen it on TV yet) airwaves with commercials for it here in Wisconsin. Apparently one of the criteria for prescribing it is that the patient be CPAP intolerant.

86

@Scott–that was the cost of the in-lab study, right (not a “take a device home” one)?

87

ouch, with all the high deductible health plans out there - you’ll have to have a bunch of money saved up in your HSA before having a study like that.

blech.

88

Yeah, that was in-lab, and they didn’t even hook up any sort of machine to me, since they didn’t find I had any sort of sleep apnea at all.

I’m ordering the same mouth/snore guard device from Amazon my step dad uses, it’s $17 so why not? If it works I’ll update the thread, might be at least a few folks who snore could benefit from such a solution.

89

Not sure if folks know about this, but if folks are dealing with CPAP’s, they may want to check out this crowdfunding effort, the Airing Wireless CPAP

It’s a pretty nifty little thing, I must admit. I don’t have sleep apnea, that I know of, but that device seemed pretty cool.

90

I’ll believe it when I see it. Not even a headstrap required? I’m pretty skeptical, but if it actually works, more power to them. I’m more than a year into my CPAP use and don’t find it all that onerous, honestly (although I don’t use the full bomber mask, just the “nasal pillows” style mask). Not needing AC power and hoses would be cool, but that looks too good to be true.

91

Yeah, that’s a long, long way from being an actual thing yet.

wvalzlevwndqlrcuxvco.png620×761

Not sure they even have a prototype built yet, according to that. Not to mention these things are hoped to be single use disposable device at a RRP of $3 each? And they require FDA approval?

Yeah, not getting my hopes up.

92

Yeah, it’s not a thing you can buy today. But it’s a neat idea nonetheless.

The one shot use aspect of it seemed weird to me though. Unnecessarily wasteful. But it kind of fits the model of various other medical things, I guess.

93

For small trips and backup solution in my car, I’ve got some Provent strips. They work, but are difficult to apply with a firm seal. And you’re supposed to exhale thru your mouth as you fall asleep but I’ve never been able to do that.

The airing devices look like a good backup or travel option.

94

If any number of similarly sized (or smaller) bluetooth earpieces can contain a battery, recharging electronics and USB-C port, I fail to see how it may be a struggle for this device.

95

I think the reason for them not being rechargeable is that by making then disposable, it eliminates the need to clean the device.

96

Reading through their FAQ they say humidity will not be a problem. I do not see how humidity would not be a problem; it still blows air into the nose and I would think that would dry out everything.

They also state that it would only cost a person 60 cents after insurance but many people have a huge deductible these days so I do not trust that assessment either.

The one thing I did not understand is that the device will be able to upload data somehow. Can they really produce something that will upload data to be transmitted to the sleep caregiver who monitors the results and reports to the insurance companies? Most insurance companies require that CPAP be used 4 hours per day for compliance or they cut off the payments. Once you get a CPAP machine you still need to purchase parts on a schedule since parts of the mask will wear out, hoses get old etc. Would the insurance companies switch to something that cost so much more daily? I suppose that would depend on if more people used the therapy would it cut down on other huge expenditures (like heart attacks etc).

97

I think this is just silly and them trying to grasp at something that maybe inconvenient. You can clean your mask with some soap and water and I doubt most people do this every day in any case. I clean most parts weekly and other parts monthly with no problems. It takes about 5 - 10 minutes to do. You can buy wipes to clean your mask daily (if I had a cold I would clean my mask after each use).

The major issue is not having to wear a mask at all and the full masks that get used are usually for people who are mouth breathers. I do not see how this would help a mouth breather (unless they also wear a chin strap to keep their mouth closed). The nasal pillow and nasal masks are not that bad. The full masks are a pain in the neck and hard to get a proper seal especially if your pressure is high but can a mouth breather really use that device is the real question. I can understand people wanting to try the Airing in any case but I would wait and see.

Some people do not like the nasal pillow type masks and looking at their picture the Airing’s nasal pillows are placed in the nose much deeper than the nasal pillow masks that I have used. I wonder how comfortable it really is and if irritation would eventually be a problem. Another issue is if a person is prone to nose bleeds, nasal pillow style can be contraindicated because the air can cause more bleeding to occur.

98

I think this is just silly and them trying to grasp at something that maybe inconvenient. You can clean your mask with some soap and water and I doubt most people do this every day in any case. I clean most parts weekly and other parts monthly with no problems. It takes about 5 - 10 minutes to do. You can buy wipes to clean your mask daily (if I had a cold I would clean my mask after each use).

Yeah, but this device, due to its tiny size, since the motor is actually inside the thing and directly in the path of your breath, it would almost certainly be extremely hard to sanitize, short of submerging it in alcohol.

Regardless, I’m not defending the design or something. I don’t really know much about any of this stuff. I just suspect that they made them disposable to avoid the sanitization issues.

99

I know you were not defending it. :)

I would rather see some type of rechargeable unit or even a zinc battery that lasted more than one day.

I am sure if this thing does work it would get used and could save lives. It is just not about being able to sleep. Sleep Apnea can lead to heart attacks when oxygen is cut off and other medical issues. I am blessed that they discovered my problem and that the therapy has cut me from not breathing 68 times an hour (more than once a minute) to less than twice an hour. I am very glad that I can use a nasal type mask I would not want to have to use the full mask as they are much more uncomfortable.

100

A few weeks ago, I was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea. All the signs were there for years: the bedroom ceiling concaves when I snore, and my father had sleep apnea. Even so–and even though I asked my doctor to test me for it–I didn’t really expect them to come back and tell me I had it. If I had apnea, I was sure they were going to tell me it was light, barely worth treating, really, but worth keeping an eye-on. Instead, they told me I stopped breathing, on average, over 60 times per hour.

I was honestly blown away; when they told me, I almost cried on the spot. Suddenly, I had confirmation of something I’d been denying to even myself for years: I was always exhausted, and there was a reason for it–a fixable reason–that wasn’t simply what I’d been worrying it was: encroaching age, and a growing lack of willpower.

Last week, I got my CPAP machine, and seriously: if anyone is on the fence about this, just fucking do it. In four days, it’s changed my life. The first morning after I started using it, I woke up and felt totally rejuvenated. As soon as it happened, I realized I hadn’t felt that way when I woke up for almost a decade: sleep was something I could collapse into at almost any time, but it never refreshed me. I always felt foggy and deadened. Now, when I wake up, I feel like I used to: like my battery has been restored. And I fucking dream again. I can’t even tell you the last time I remember my dreams.

Also, in reply to @noun above, granted this was a few years ago if you still haven’t gotten a CPAP because you think it’s not going to fix anything, please reconsider. You’re right that sleep apnea is caused by the muscles of the throat collapsing, which in turn, prevents you from breathing, but by keeping your air passages pressurized during sleep, CPAP machines can prevent that collapse to begin with. They don’t just “blow air in;” they keep everything pressurized. Untreated sleep apnea kills. It was a contributing factor in Carrie Fisher’s death, as well as my father’s. Any concerns you have about treatment are going to go away once you use it.