Mild apnea

Hello
I just returned from my sleep study results. The doctor told me That there were 5X's that I stopped breathing on my side, and 25X's on my back - per hour. I also am a mouth breather and snore. Although she recommended a full mask cpap, she also said I could try a dental mouth piece or a supportive pillow to prevent back sleeping. Has anyone ever tried these other options? If so, any recommendations for a pillow? I'm very reluctant in doing this, and I'm wondering if I should try the pillow method first. I'm listed under the category of mild apnea at 15 . Mild range is 5-15 with moderate 15-30. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thank so much!!
Laura

Some people use a back or fanny pack to keep from flipping overnight til they get used to not back sleeping and you can buy foam wedges to go behind you but they can slip unless resting directly on foam.

Do you sleep on your back?
ALL NIGHT LONG?
Most people need to change positions, to avoid waking up in PAIN.
Since you still had SOME events on your side, cpap sounds like the best plan.
My apnea was mild, but AHI does not figure in the LENGTH of each event.
You could be NOT BREATHING for long enough to damage your brain, heart, etc.

What were your O2 levels? The length of the events? If they are all barely over 10 seconds and your O2 doesn't drop then try the pillows however if your O2 drops and the events are long then you should get yourself a cpap machine.

Remember that AHI of 15 means that you are choked awake 15 times an hour or every 4 minutes.

Welcome Laura,
I too was diagnosed with mild apnea. I was required to have a sleep study for a DOT physical and I didn't think I had a problem sleeping. So denial was a stumbling block for me. But the changes for me were many. And to think that I thought many of the problems were just due to getting older.
After being on treatment now for 2 years I am so thankful that I was diagnosed.
Benefits I have noticed:
1. In the mornings I would be fatigued, dizzy, and worn out after getting ready for the day, needing to set down and rest for a while. Now I no longer feel this way and look forward to completing projects.
2. Before at nights I would jump up to go to the bathroom and sometime not make it. Since starting treatment I have not needed to go to the bathroom once at night.
3. My diabetes medication has been cut in half.
4. Before at night I would feel irregular heart beats when I was trying to go to sleep. I no longer notice this.
5. Before at night I would awaken with reflux in my throat and couldn't get rid of the acid taste without eating bread. Not once since starting treatment have I had reflux and have decreased from Prilosec to Zantac.

I know there are other benefits I am missing.

Now to address your pillow/position question. Think of your comfort. I want to be able to freely move and with my CPAP, I have no problem with turning when I feel like it. The dental mouth pieces also have comfort problems and the only way to know if they work is to have a sleep study with one in place.

My choice would be to learn all you can about CPAP and then you feel like you are in control.

Zimmy56 wrote:. . . she recommended a full mask cpap . . .

You got a good recommendation there.

Zimmy56 wrote:. . . category of mild apnea at 15 . . . .

Mild in the sense of few events does not mean mild damage to sleep. Mild apnea can totally wreck the effectiveness of your sleep. You may even find that CPAP improves your sleep so much that it improves everything about your life. And I do mean everything. If you, however, find it does not, you can always try other less-effective approaches later after giving PAP the full shot first. This forum can help you give it that shot.

Zimmy56 wrote:. . . Any suggestions would be appreciated. . . .

I suggest following the doc's recommendation: PAP therapy.

But hey, that's just me.

-jeff

Hey Laura!
How are you feeling during the day? Obviously something prompted the sleep study, so guessing you were seeing some symptoms?
My AHI was less than 4 during my sleep study, but I was feeling awful and wanted to do something about it - so started CPAP a few weeks ago and I'm loving it!!! Total new lease of life - for example, it's currently 11.15pm and I'm still wide awake feeling like i could run a 10k (except its dark and snowing outside, so that's unlikely to happen!).
I tried side sleeping - it worked for me to an extent, but still wasn't feeling like I should.
CPAP has worked for me - and I was totally averse to it before!
I guess I'd try side sleeping first, but if I still felt tired, I'd be doing CPAP - best thing I ever done

While I'm definitely new to using a CPAP, I also was diagnosed with mild apnea. Ahi of only 7.7, however, I did have significant reduction of my Rem sleep and episodes of moderate drop in o2 levels. My history of chronic migraines, hypertension and asthma made treatment a no brainer. I had no trouble during my second sleep study falling asleep with a nasal mask, and also did very well last night. Was asleep in approximately 5 minutes, I did have the mask a little too lose and have a few episodes of leaking (which did not even wake me), but overall did very well according to my sleep report. This morning was the first time in I can't even remember where I did not wake with a headache, I also woke up feeling amazing, and I'm told I won't even begin to see real results for approximately 3 months. If this morning is an indication, sign me up this puppy isn't leaving my side while I sleep. I have most likely had this condition for years, but I don't snore, and until I started waking up choking gasping for breath I had no idea anything was a miss. I'm glad I had a primary care doctor that listened and didn't rule out the possibility because of my non snoring. I'm pretty much a side sleeper already. Good luck!

I was diagnosed with mild obstructive sleep apnea and my primary care doctor said that while I might want to consider CPAP therapy, it might not be necessary since my sleep apnea was in the "mild" category according to my home sleep study. There were "other" options he said. I see a pulmonologist routinely anyway due to other respiratory issues and he is board certified in sleep disorders. This pulmonologist encouraged me to try the CPAP (well, APAP actually) because I was having symptoms reflecting the sleep apnea. I was tired, waking every hour at night, nocturia, etc. I am soooooooooo glad I did opt for the APAP therapy. I just finished my 4th month and I am definitely feeling so much better. It has taken almost this long for me to really start to notice the improvement. When I started out, I was still waking up quite often at night, still around every hour and a half to two hours, and still very tired during the day. I have many nights now where I sleep at least 4 hour stretches at a time and I have had a number of nights where I slept 5 hour stretches and even a couple of six hour stretches. When I wake up in the morning now, I feel refreshed and rested more often than not. I still have nights that are not so great and mornings also that are not A-1 wonderful but definitely, more often than not, I am sleeping longer and waking up feeling better. There is an adjustment period so be prepared for that. I was disappointed in the beginning that I wasn't one of the ones who woke up feeling like a new person almost immediately but I'm so glad I hung in with the CPAP and am able to feel so much better now.

As you are assessing information to help you with a decision, I'll add one more thing. Check your sleep study for how much REM you had in the supine vs side positions. Make sure you had enough REM while on your side to be reasonably sure your "mild" result is reflective of your possible worst case scenario on your side. If your side results had little or no REM, it's quite possible your usual stats are not so mild.

I certainly understand not wanting to use CPAP if it is not necessary. Do keep in mind even mild sleep apnea can be problematic. If you have any doubt, go with CPAP. In the case of a sleep apnea diagnosis, mild does not mean negligible. When one has a "mild" heart attack, people take notice in order to prevent worse problems later. I've heard too many people say they thought mild OSA meant not meriting treatment. Not so. Good luck with figuring things out.

Other have more or less said this in prior replies, but I'll reiterate.

The risks of Sleep Apnea are very well know to medicine (unlike thirty years ago). However, they cannot correlate degree of severity with degree of risk, as is the case in most fields of medical science. Also, the way severity is measured is even iffy. For instance, what's worse, many short events or a few very long events? The determination of an event is based on the length of the event and the oxygen level, which is arbitrary. Also, needing a higher pressure to treat the condition is not considered a measure of severity at this time, that too may change someday.

In summary, we do know that Sleep Apnea is dangerous. We don't know how much Sleep Apnea is how dangerous (and may not for a long time).

I have heard it said that most lead researchers (though perhaps not so much most clinicians) now consider an AHI of 15 to be something that should be treated even if the person tested feels fine with zero symptoms. So to my way of thinking, if a person is having any sleepiness/tiredness issues, recommending PAP at lower AHIs is a no-brainer. Catching as early as possible any condition that tends to progress is an important principle in preventive medicine and is the cost-effective thing to do, long-term, IMO.

Right now, the experts don't believe in aggressively trying to get the AHI down to zero or as close as they possibly can. That, too, might change in the next few years.