Does nighttime coughing affect AHI?

Hi,

I was diagnosed with mild SA and have been an auto CPAP (Resmed autoset 10) for the past 8 months. My AHI index numbers have been averaging between 3-6 with most of my apneas being hypopneas. I developed a dry cough a few days ago that seems to get worse if I wake up to go to the bathroom and then try to fall back asleep. The coughing keeps me up. When I finally do get up, I’ve noticed that my AHI index increased. When I review my stats on the myAir app, the increase is isolated to the time period when I was coughing. Plus, It shows I had numerous central apneas during this period as well.

Does anyone know if coughing increases your AHI (and creates central apneas) ? Is this normal?

One if you were coughing you weren't asleep, Sleep Apnea happens when you are asleep.... Coughing involves moving air, the machine senses air movement. So the answer is yes, but no because you are awake. Jim

cargo1954 wrote:Hi,

I was diagnosed with mild SA and have been an auto CPAP (Resmed autoset 10) for the past 8 months. My AHI index numbers have been averaging between 3-6 with most of my apneas being hypopneas. I developed a dry cough a few days ago that seems to get worse if I wake up to go to the bathroom and then try to fall back asleep. The coughing keeps me up. When I finally do get up, I’ve noticed that my AHI index increased. When I review my stats on the myAir app, the increase is isolated to the time period when I was coughing. Plus, It shows I had numerous central apneas during this period as well.

Does anyone know if coughing increases your AHI (and creates central apneas) ? Is this normal?

i have copd with the chronic bronchitis. i find it best to have a little swig of nyquil before bed or suck a halls lozenge before bed. if that don't help it may be reflux sneaking in. in that raise your head up with a wedge pillow or a stack of pillows. good luck.

cargo1954 wrote:Hi,

I was diagnosed with mild SA and have been an auto CPAP (Resmed autoset 10) for the past 8 months. My AHI index numbers have been averaging between 3-6 with most of my apneas being hypopneas. I developed a dry cough a few days ago that seems to get worse if I wake up to go to the bathroom and then try to fall back asleep. The coughing keeps me up. When I finally do get up, I’ve noticed that my AHI index increased. When I review my stats on the myAir app, the increase is isolated to the time period when I was coughing. Plus, It shows I had numerous central apneas during this period as well.

Does anyone know if coughing increases your AHI (and creates central apneas) ? Is this normal?

Have you recently started taking Lisinopril (blood pressure medication)?
Before I even started CPAP therapy, I was prescribed Lisinopril and experienced immediate coughing that didn't stop till I stopped taking it. It's a common side effect which is noted in any documentation regarding this medication.
As far as it affecting your AHI, you would have to stop breathing for at least 10 seconds to register as an Apnea.


Den

.

The cough is a result of catching a cold from my wife. I too have a history of bronchitis but this time it developed into a dry cough which I can’t shake The air movement explanation makes a lot of sense which probably explains the spike in my AHI.

AHI is all about either Bo breathing or Major decease in breathing for 10 seconds or more. So no a cough won't increase it. But a cold could.
I cough and clear my throat a good amount each night and think I have some post nasal drip that makes things worse and it does'nt make things worse.

The increase in AHI is probably just SWJ breathing irregularities getting flagged by mistake.
Remember the machine doesn't know if you are awake or asleep. All it measures is air flow and when you are ill and coughing or sneezing or just awake...the air flow isn't going to be like nice normal regular asleep air flow. It's going to be irregular and the machine only knows air flow and it can and will flag awake breathing by mistake. It's why we tell people to ignore AHI when sick. It's not necessarily accurate.

SWJ..sleep/wake/junk events aren't "real" events....you are awake or semi awake when they get flagged and they don't count in the sleep apnea evaluation of therapy process. You have to be asleep for them to matter.
If you remember coughing...you were awake.

So the cough isn't causing sleep apnea events...not in the sense of the airway collapsing while asleep but it can cause SWJ event flags because the machine doesn't know you are awake. The increased AHI isn't "real" in terms of OSA being worse or anything like that.
The increased in AHI is nothing more than false positives as a by product of crappy sleep when we have a cough or cold causing us to wake often.
A lot of times the machine will flag CAs/centrals because we pause our breathing often when awake..but the machine can be confused and sometimes flag those pauses as OAs or hyponeas. It is what it is and nothing we can do about it except try to ignore it until the illness has run its course. The cough doesn't really cause anything but instead the cause of the cough can confuse the machine.

So the illness can cause false event flagging and elevated AHI that isn't real. Best to just let things run its course and then once the illness has past and the residual coughing subsided...then you evaluate you therapy.
If it is anything like the bug I caught in late October...the cough lasted until late January after the bulk of the "cold" symptoms went away 10 to 14 days in the first of Nov.

Probably, the question would have been better asked in the reverse. That is, "Can Apnea and Hypopnea episodes cause coughing?"

I would answer that this is one of the possible causes, along with many other possible causes. I would especially say yes if this is coughing that seems mostly (or entirely) to happen at night.

BTW, I had a chronic hacking cough for years that subsided during my first week of CPAP use!

Very interesting and informative responses. Thank you Pugsy for the detailed response. All were very helpful !