Upper Back Pain w/CPAP

Danimal · Post by **Danimal** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 1:32 pm

This is my first post here as i am new to the CPAP world. I have been on CPAP for about 30days now and while it has been a life changing experience, I now have a new issue. Over the last week I have began to experience really bad upper back pain between my shoulder blades that wakes me up at night. It is almost like someone hit me in the back and it is hard to breathe until the pain goes away.

It began as I would go to bed feeling fine and wake up about 7 hours later with the pain and have to get out of bed and take some Motrin and sit up for about an hour or hour and a half before the pain would subside and I could go back to bed. Once I went back to bed, the pain would return in 2 hours. Now the pain has come on much sooner as I can only be in bed about 4 hours and have to get up. Once the pain is gone.. it is gone for the day.

I have never had any type of back pain before so this is really puzzling to me. My currently CPAP set up is a Remstar Pro 2 with Cflex and a heated humidifier. My current setting is 16 cm using the clfex at 3 with the ramp starting at 5cm.

Anyone have any ideas as to what is going on?

THanks,
Danimal

Goofproof · Post by **Goofproof** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 1:55 pm

Your pressure is close to mine, when I started I had some pain from the streaching that usually left in a hour, but then again they had my chest spread open two months before I started on CPAP. I have to use B-100's to keep my jouint pain down. You might check with a GP if it keeps hurting, the CPAP pressure bothers you less the longer you use it, you get use to it. Jim

NyNurse33 · Post by **NyNurse33** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 4:31 pm

Not sure if this will help, but I had pain in the same area for over a year. Turned out I had over 100 gall stones in my gallbladder that was the cause of my pain. Belive it or not some people get this referred pain in this area. The day my gallbladder was removed was the last day of this pain.

DreamStalker · Post by **DreamStalker** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 5:35 pm

I have been on the hose for a little over a month now and I'm begining to have the same symptoms. I thought it was Aerophagia ... air that gets trapped in your stomach ... I notice that burping seems to relieve the pain.

- roberto

Sleepless in St. Louis · Post by **Sleepless in St. Louis** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 5:45 pm

NYnurse. Did the gall stone pains start/stop depending on whether you were laying down or not as the OP described? I could see how a air bubble in the tummy could hurt more or less when in certain positions. Not sure what you would expect with the stones. I only know that the stones hurt. My mother had them and she said, "not fun".

elliejose · Post by **elliejose** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 6:20 pm

Goofproof,

B-100s for joint pain? Does it help?
I am taking celebrex and don't really want to do it because of my family history of heart problems. But haven't found anything else to help.

DreamStalker · Post by **DreamStalker** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 6:36 pm

elliejose wrote:Goofproof,

B-100s for joint pain? Does it help?
I am taking celebrex and don't really want to do it because of my family history of heart problems. But haven't found anything else to help.

I take Glucosamine seems to work well for my joint pains.

- roberto

Goofproof · Post by **Goofproof** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 7:39 pm

elliejose wrote:Goofproof,

B-100s for joint pain? Does it help?
I am taking celebrex and don't really want to do it because of my family history of heart problems. But haven't found anything else to help.

For me and the wife, bad arthritis, As long as we take it we are fine, sometimes I go with B-150s, (Stronger), I also take large doses of B-1, B-6, B-12 and Niacin. If I stop the B-100 for a week, the pain restarts. Jim

I've had sucess with this for over 10 years.

hornplayer · Post by **hornplayer** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 8:31 pm

Hi Danimal - It might be something as simple as you are sleeping in a different position in bed with the CPAP on. I get some lower back pain once in a while because I sleep on my back more now. Like you - after an hour in the morning, the pain is gone. Restorative sleep is great isn't it!?

krousseau · Post by **krousseau** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 9:21 pm

Do you think the Motrin helps-or is it sitting up that helps?
I would tend to bet on aerophagia-but let your doc do a complete history of the pain and any other associated symptoms since GERD or cardiac pain can also be referred.

Goofproof · Post by **Goofproof** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 9:24 pm

DreamStalker wrote:
elliejose wrote:Goofproof,

B-100s for joint pain? Does it help?
I am taking celebrex and don't really want to do it because of my family history of heart problems. But haven't found anything else to help.
I take Glucosamine seems to work well for my joint pains.

- roberto

I tok a whole bowl full of that and it didn't help, It was really 500 tabs. I had ran out of "B" and forgot what helped what, so I suffered for a month. jim

justbeth13 · Post by **justbeth13** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 10:37 pm

Danimal,
I'm a newbie too. About to go into night 5 with my machine. I've had a really hard time with back pain too. I describe it more as lung pain, though. Feels like I've inhaled glass. Also wakes me up after 6-7 hours. Motrin helps, as does being upright. My doc says it could be dryness - humidity does help. RT says it's the alveoli stretching out (being filled with air). Don't know what it is, but wish it would stop!
Beth

Danimal · Post by **Danimal** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 11:02 pm

Thanks to all for the replies... lots of good info here. I don't know what is actually causing the pain but I am going to consult my Doctor about Aerophagia and see what he has to say. I have to agree with Justbeth as the pain is definately lung based as it is hard to breathe until the pain resides. Not sure if the Motrin is helping or just getting off the CPAP and sitting up, but either way I am not a big fan of pain. I am going to try to sleep without the CPAP tonight and see if I am pain free, even though I will probably be very tired tomorrow. But I will go back on it tomorrow as the 4 good hours I am currently getting is better than the 8 restless hours.

-Danimal[/img]

Offerocker · Post by **Offerocker** » Mon Sep 04, 2006 11:05 pm

This is just a thought, especially since you are new to cpap -
Could it possibly be that you're not moving around in bed as much?
I remember that I didn't want to 'disturb' a good mask seal, and tried to sleep without moving during the night - when I could control it, that is. Now, I just 'adjust', and toss from side to side.
If you're not moving, you may just get stiff from that. ??

tg5283 · Post by **tg5283** » Wed Jan 24, 2007 3:26 pm

I'm new to this forum and here to learn. I have the exact same problem, back and Lung Pain. I have spent the entire day looking through posts and other subjects learning quit a bit. I on the other hand have been on CPAP for approximatley 5 years. The pain is recent, however, I have always had issues, many in which I read discussions posted on this site. Shame on me for waiting so long!! I plan to start a log and keep track going forward.