Heartburn

[joekel]

Hi everyone it's been a while since I posted. I seem to having a terrible case of gerd It starters about 3 weeks ago. I had my equipment upgraded and my insurance co would only allow to have a full face mask. I am a mouth breather but for years I used nasal pillows with really no issues used a chin strap. Well now I feel horribly bloated and burning throat and windpipe. 2 days ago I switched back to my nasal pillows seems to help a little. I have a follow up with my dr next week. Does anyone have any suggestions thanks joekel

[LSAT]

GERD requires medication...It's not from the CPAP. Until you see your doctor...raise the head of your bed, do not eat within 3 hours of bedtime and start taking an OTC medication...Zantac or Prevacid (there are others). Gerd...if ignored..can cause serious problems.

[Janknitz]

I don't agree with LSAT. GERD can indeed be caused by aerophagia. The volume of air in the stomach can put pressure on the sphincter and that can cause it to fail to seal, allowing stomach acids into the esophagus.

In a full face mask you may be swallowing more air. With nasal pillows you have to seal off the oropharynx for effective treatment by tongue placement. And that prevents Aerophagia. So there's a reasonable explanation of why nasal pillows work better for you.

Who told you that your insurance only covers a FF mask? That sounds like a lie DMEs like to use because it's probably cheaper for them to buy one type of mask in volume and they force everyone to take it because they don't have to spend time or effort to see what's best for you. Most insurers pay by HCPCS codes (billing codes) and while FF masks have a different billing code than nasal and nasal pillow masks, I've NEVER seen an insurer that did not cover all three. It's in their best interests to make sure you can find a mask that works for you (NOT the DMEs pocketbook!) so that you can be compliant. I would contact your insurer directly and ask if A0733 is covered. That's nasal pillows and it will avoid confusion if you ask for the specific hcpcs code rather than trying to explain to someone who is unfamiliar with CPAP what a nasal pillow is.

As for GERD medication, try to avoid it if you can. Most people with GERD have too little stomach acid, not to much. These acid suppressing medications give short term relief and long term problems. Serious problems! You will be much better off if you tackle the cause (aerophagia) rather than the symptom.

[Therapist]

for years I used nasal pillows with really no issues used a chin strap.

my insurance co would only allow to have a full face mask.

WTF???

[WindCpap]

If the FFM is causing heartburn, and you have not had it before, the solution is obvious:

1. Switch back to nasal pillows even if you have to pay for it yourself.
2. Take a fast acting heartburn remedy like Gaviscon to get the heartburn under control. If the heartburn continues, see your doctor. The other remedies that were suggested are for treatment of chronic GERD, and while they will help, will not give you immediate relief.

"It hurts when I hold my arm this way"
"Don't hold your arm that way"

[joekel]

Thanks everyone for the advice. Spoke to Drs office this morning they are putting in paperwork for new nasal pillows. Spoke to ins co also their policy is to use full face first, if there is an issue then they will change equipment on Drs orders ---PIA. I will also try the over the counter meds. Again thanks!!

[WindCpap]

Just noticed some bad advice

As for GERD medication, try to avoid it if you can. Most people with GERD have too little stomach acid, not to much. These acid suppressing medications give short term relief and long term problems. Serious problems!

For actual GERD, proper acid reducing medications are for long term use, and essential for treatment. Under a doctor's supervision, these medications will, in some cases, actually allow the valves to heal that are causing the problem in the first place. This happens over several years. LSAT was absolutely right about GERD and its treatment, just a little quick to jump to jump to conclusions on the actual diagnoses in this case.

[Sheffey]

For actual GERD, proper acid reducing medications are for long term use, and essential for treatment. Under a doctor's supervision, these medications will, in some cases, actually allow the valves to heal that are causing the problem in the first place. This happens over several years. LSAT was absolutely right about GERD and its treatment, just a little quick to jump to jump to conclusions on the actual diagnoses in this case.

+1

But, I don't know that the OP would get a diagnosis of GERD. He's only had the problem for three weeks, and the adjustment he is making to his CPAP process may solve the problem.

[WindCpap]

But, I don't know that the OP would get a diagnosis of GERD. He's only had the problem for three weeks, and the adjustment he is making to his CPAP process may solve the problem.

I thought I implied that. Perhaps not.

[Wulfman...]

Hi everyone it's been a while since I posted. I seem to having a terrible case of gerd It starters about 3 weeks ago. I had my equipment upgraded and my insurance co would only allow to have a full face mask. I am a mouth breather but for years I used nasal pillows with really no issues used a chin strap. Well now I feel horribly bloated and burning throat and windpipe. 2 days ago I switched back to my nasal pillows seems to help a little. I have a follow up with my dr next week. Does anyone have any suggestions thanks joekel

You need to inspect your machine and verify which model it is. Your profile has a bunch of mis-matched equipment and the machine shows as a non-data-capable model. I hope they didn't stick you with a "brick". You need to use software and see what's happening during the night. That could help you alleviate your GERD.


Den

.

[rhodesengr]

I've had GERD for years. Never considered that it might be sleep related. I was diagnsoed with GERD around 1996 and my Dr put me on Prilosec. The GERD meds mostly fall into the PPI's (proton pump inhibitors) and include prilosec, prevacid, nexium, protonix, and no doubt others. They are the strongest and work really well. The other class are the H2 blockers and include drugs like zantac and pepcid. They never did much for me. For me, I found prilosec worked well but I believe over a few years it caused me to gain weight. My Dr claimed that wasn't possible but I am prett sure it was true. I have since switched to prevacid. Note that both prolsec and prevacid are now both available as both generic and OTC. I buy mine at Costco. When I first started with PPI's they were prescription only. So if you just want to treat GERD, you can just go buy some prilosec or prevacid generics and try them out.

It will be very interesting to see if regular CPAP use (just started recently, see my thread) changes my GERD situation.

[stardust123]

Before doing anything, check all side effects of medications. Many years ago, I was given a medication and had HORRIFIC heart burn. I spent a lot of money having medical tests to find out why. Nobody ever told me to check the side effects of medications. well sure enough I quit taking a medication, which wasn't helping anyway, and the problem went away. It takes a while to heal up too. Anyway, check your medications.

Also prilosec DOES make you gain weight. I am thin about 115 pounds and five foot 2. When I was going through all that heart burn stuff, I went up in weight to about 130 pounds. I stopped taking the medication when the heart burn subsided and the weight went away. I did not even diet or anything.

One of the side effects of incorrect CPAP use, can be heart burn. But check all other meds too.

[mouthbreather72]

Hi everyone it's been a while since I posted. I seem to having a terrible case of gerd It starters about 3 weeks ago. I had my equipment upgraded and my insurance co would only allow to have a full face mask. I am a mouth breather but for years I used nasal pillows with really no issues used a chin strap. Well now I feel horribly bloated and burning throat and windpipe. 2 days ago I switched back to my nasal pillows seems to help a little. I have a follow up with my dr next week. Does anyone have any suggestions thanks joekel

I'm not a doctor, and I don't know your entire medical history. But...

I never experienced heartburn in my life prior to being on cpap. In my case, the heartburn was not sour or acidic tasting. It felt like burning hot fumes were coming up my throat. I could actually feel the burn in my nose - like vapors. It didn't matter what I ate or drank. It was constant for a few weeks. I believe my gallbladder was not secreting enough to aid in proper digestion, but the tests (x-ray, ultrasound, and endoscopy) revealed no stones. Doctors said I might just have sludge or a slow gallbladder. They wanted me to take medication to reduce the acid in my stomach, but I agree with another user who mentioned that too much acid was not the problem. I feel I had too little acid and/or natural secretions to properly digest my food.

The only thing that worked for me sounds a little crazy and old-fashioned, but it might help you. Drink about 1 to 2 TBSP of apple cider vinegar before each meal. At first, I had to mix it with honey to be able to swallow it. After about a week, I could drink it by itself and chase it with some cold water. Make sure you chase it and don't hold it in your mouth for a long time. After about two weeks, I was better. I think my case was caused by a less than ideal diet, slow gallbladder, and cpap air blowing into my stomach all night which puts stress on the valve that is supposed to keep gastric fumes/juices from rising into your throat.

Now I only drink the apple cider vinegar once in a while as a preventative because I truly believe it aids in overall good digestion.

[urn357]

I have bad GERD and am getting a EGD done actually (scope into my esophagus/stomach) Monday to see what the hell is going on. The docs don't believe it is anything to do with sleep apnea. I have been put on prescribed Nexium, worked about a month or two, then started to feel it coming back. Then they put me on an even stronger medication called Dexilant ($90 for 30 pills WITH teacher insurance!) and it has worked great for about a month until 2 days ago and I feel the burn in my throat coming back again. Hoping they find something they can fix (hiatal hernia or stretch my espophagus) and nothing bad of course. Anyway, wish you luck on your GERD fix. I know exactly how the burn is and dealing with it daily, the constant clearing of the throat and coughing, Sux!

[rhodesengr]

Now I only drink the apple cider vinegar once in a while as a preventative because I truly believe it aids in overall good digestion.

yes, there is a theory going around that GERD is due to too little acid rather than too much acid. In fact there is at least one book on the topic. I looked into it a few years ago. Apple cider vinegar was one of the methods to increase your stomach acid. There is another method that you may like better if it works for you. You can buy a supplement called Betaine HCL. Here is one example
http://www.amazon.com/Now-Foods-Betaine ... B000M4CD2C

I found it much easier to just take the capsules than to drink the cider vinegar. There are also cider vinegar capsules you can get. The idea was appealing to me sense it is similar thinking to low carb diets. The problem is not too much fat etc... but in my case, it seemed to help but not enough by itself. If the vinegar works for you, you might find the betaine works better or at least easier.