21 yr. old son just diagnosed with Sleep Apnea

I am so sad to have found out my 21 year old son was just diagnosed with mild sleep apnea. He doesn't know specifics yet, they just called and told him. He has an appointment at the sleep lab on Wednesday to go over his test results. I am so sad to hear that now my 21 year old son has to deal with this. His father, my late husband had sleep apnea. He passed away at 35 years old. At that time we were young, I had no idea about sleep apnea and the dangers. He also had high blood pressure, and an enlarged heart. I am sure due to the sleep apnea. My husband only used his machine one night and decided he didn't like to sleep with it so it was put up in the closet never to be used again. Oh how I wish I would have done more research and was able to convince him to wear the CPAP machine at night. He passed in his sleep. He was drinking one night, fell asleep on the couch and died. It was horrible! At the time our children ages 8, 12 and 14 witnessed it all. I am now so sad that my son has this. I have only recently found out more about it because I was diagnosed with apnea in February.

Hello Renee,

I know you think it is awful that your son has been diagnosed at such an early age, however you may want to think of it another way. Untreated Sleep Apnea leads to so many health issues that treat Sleep Apnea can help mitigate. His father is a clear example of some of the damage that untreated Sleep Apnea can do. The field is fairly new as far as medicine goes and many new approaches are being researched.
Please do not let him do surgery in order to not use a CPAP machine if he tries that approach. In my opinion, the surgeries are not well tested and can do more harm than good at his young age. CPAP it totally reversible if he chooses a different treatment in the future. Have him get a fully data capable Auto Adjusting CPAP (APAP) and have him try at least 4 different masks before settling on the one he likes best. They all fit differently and they all take patience and trial and error to get comfortable.

The fact that you are on this forum will help you to help him understand more about his condition. There is a wealth of information here to read. There are very knowledgeable people who are patient and willing to help if you have questions. If he wants to join, he will be welcomed.

I wish you both the best with your treatment.
Take care,
Karen

If it's mild and he has no symptoms ( excessively tired , High BP, insomnia ) he might not require CPAP useage

Most people on the forum have severe apnea

What were his test results, O2 saturation, AHI

Renee,

I would suggest thinking about this early diagnosis another way: by catching this early, your son has been spared the apnea-realated health issues which plague so many of us who suffer for years with our apnea before diagnosis: the high blood pressure, the heart damage, the arrhythmias, the strokes. My own father passed away recently of a stroke which I am sure was related to his poorly-controlled sleep apnea.

Your son is young. He will adapt. And xPAP therapy is not as burdensome as you might think; indeed, for many it is literally a breath of fresh air that brings us renewed energy and vitality. I've been on my machine for just two weeks and already I would not be without it for any reason: it's made that much of a difference in my life.

Thank you for taking the time to share, and please know that there are many people here who understand your (and your son's) anxieties and fears and would be glad to help in any way we can.

Renee, I can easily see how your son's diagnosis would make you feel sad and bring up all the memories of losing your husband at such a young age, and with three young children. Maybe some of the sadness is old grief getting stirred up? I do think you'll be able to see your son's diagnosis the way Karen (PadACheek) described after you've had a little time to digest everything and trust that you can help create a different and better outcome for your son.

Renee,

Look at this as an opportunity to help your son.
Untreated sleep apnea is the villain here and that doesn't have to be your son.

Are you using a machine now? Your use can provide a role model for his way forward without the really bad effects of untreated sleep apnea.
Post any questions and there will be help on this forum.

As a 25 year old diagnosed 2 years ago you need to know that it does not need to be a curse. I got my CPAP and got in to see my orthodontist and an oral surgeon. I have a dramatically receding jawline which narrows my airway. As such, I am preparing for a Double Mandibular Advancement and Genioplasty surgery (basically moving both jaws forward and repositioning of the chin).

This will in theory cure my sleep apnea as my airway will be large enough for my face and tongue.

I am young and refuse to let something like this dictate my life. If your son is obese he needs to lose weight. If not, I am a strong advocate for surgery while he is young. Some may disagree with me but I think a cpap is like slapping duct tape on the problem. There are solutions. Do your research, talk to your doctors. In patients with a receding jaw there is around a 85% success rate of eliminating sleep apnea with a jaw advancement.

Hope it goes okay for him. My symptoms showed up when I was about 16 but I always just assumed it was because of partying in high school too much and then staying up too late studying in university. Knowing at 21 is a good thing! It's better than dealing with it for 40 years.

Everybody is so positive about CPAP in this forum. Well…..me too. Everybody should have an APAP. I like it so much I want to take to work and watch TV in the evening. This air feels so good. Also my APAP is like a teddy-bear. I like it sooooo much! The story of your husband is sad!! But the story of your son is not. He’s lucky to have a good mom. And yes that’s what you are…..if you have expressed yourself accurately!

Right now, CPAP (and APAP) is the "gold standard" for treating OSA.
This is because it is the most consistently successful treatment--
--but only for those who use it religiously every night--all night.
Your son can join all the professional athletes who use CPAP,
and enjoy the blessings of good health and long life.
http://mericandreamer.com/2013/07/17/co ... eep-apnea/

Do you know how to help keep him from being screwed by the DME and the rest of the system?

If not, read the useful links in my signature line about how to not get screwed with the wrong CPAP machine and other dirty medical tricks.

Renee,

I'm sorry your son has this disease, but its much better to find out now - CPAP could save his life. By finding out now, at the age of 21 he should be able to avoid all the related health issues that OSA sufferers are subject to. For instance, he can avoid what happened to his dad, such a tragic thing to die so young and leave you with 3 little kids. My heart goes out to you, I'm sure that was the worst time of your life. Now your son has a way to prevent that happening to him. You might want your other 2 kids to be tested for sleep apnea as well.

You and your son can learn about sleep apnea and CPAP therapy together. I know you are a newbie, diagnosed in Feb of this year, so you are ahead of him in the learning curve. Take archangle's advice & learn how for him to approach the DME & get the best machine & mask for him. Also, make sure they don't sell him a brick. Monitoring your own data is critical to managing your therapy.

Your son may have some issues like, embarrassment in from of a girlfriend who is sleeping over (or living with him). Tell him CPAP can be sexy - my nephew had some of these issues, but overcame them because his dad died of heart disease at 49 & he had a CPAP but didn't use it. My nephew doesn't want to die young like his dad & realized image isn't really important, its the feelings you have for the other person. If his girlfriend has a problem with it, she probably doesn't really love him. These are issues you can help talk him thru, and I've helped my nephew, so if you run into a wall on this issue PM me & I can give you some help I gave my nephew.

I know someone suggested surgery, but he is young & if he can use CPAP, that is really a better option than surgery. Many times surgery doesn't work and can make the sleep apnea worse. I know EmRav is having surgery, but his is a very invasive surgery & his case doesn't sound like textbook OSA. I would steer your son away from surgical options, these may seem to work but if in the long run he isn't getting oxygen to his vital organs while sleeping, he is not getting therapy. That could be deadly.

Hang in there & post your questions on the forum. Encourage him to join & know we are here if you need us.

Jen

Renee, for mild sleep apnea rather than having mandibular advancement surgery, your son might want to look as oral devices that bring the lower jaw forward. They are quite expensive, but are claimed to work well in those with an AHI less than 10 (50% reduction in AHI is often stated). Or a combination of oral device and cpap may make it even better.

SleepyToo2 wrote:Renee, for mild sleep apnea rather than having mandibular advancement surgery, your son might want to look as oral devices that bring the lower jaw forward. They are quite expensive, but are claimed to work well in those with an AHI less than 10 (50% reduction in AHI is often stated). Or a combination of oral device and cpap may make it even better.

According to this study, they are lot more successful than that, particularly with adjustable appliances in getting the AHI below 5. The chances of success are greater with mild and moderate apnea although there were a few severe ranges that seemed to have success.

https://advancedbrainmonitoring.app.box ... 7pjn8s11y4

Do agree that Renee's son should try an oral appliance before resorting to surgery, particularly, with mild apnea, if he doesn't want to try cpap.

The combination of an oral device and cpap is often used for severe apnea since many times, a dental device doesn't usually work as well for that severity range.

49er

This is actually great for him to know the issue so early on.
Your other two children need to get tested as well...

Renee71 wrote:I am so sad to have found out my 21 year old son was just diagnosed with mild sleep apnea. He doesn't know specifics yet, they just called and told him. He has an appointment at the sleep lab on Wednesday to go over his test results. I am so sad to hear that now my 21 year old son has to deal with this. His father, my late husband had sleep apnea. He passed away at 35 years old. At that time we were young, I had no idea about sleep apnea and the dangers. He also had high blood pressure, and an enlarged heart. I am sure due to the sleep apnea. My husband only used his machine one night and decided he didn't like to sleep with it so it was put up in the closet never to be used again. Oh how I wish I would have done more research and was able to convince him to wear the CPAP machine at night. He passed in his sleep. He was drinking one night, fell asleep on the couch and died. It was horrible! At the time our children ages 8, 12 and 14 witnessed it all. I am now so sad that my son has this. I have only recently found out more about it because I was diagnosed with apnea in February.

I know someone suggested surgery, but he is young & if he can use CPAP, that is really a better option than surgery. Many times surgery doesn't work and can make the sleep apnea worse. I know EmRav is having surgery, but his is a very invasive surgery & his case doesn't sound like textbook OSA. I would steer your son away from surgical options, these may seem to work but if in the long run he isn't getting oxygen to his vital organs while sleeping, he is not getting therapy. That could be deadly.

Not to get off the subject but I found this exert interesting regarding MMA surgery in an article written by Dr. Park:

http://respiratory-care-sleep-medicine. ... rgery.aspx

A meta-analysis by Holty and Guilleminault [5] pooled 53 reports describing 22 unique patient populations (627 patients), and found that the mean AHI decreased from 63.9/hr to 9.5/hr, with a pooled surgical success rate of 86%. Overall, 43.2% were cured (AHI < 5), with a 66.7% cure rate for those with a preoperative AHI < 30/hr. Long-term surgical success was maintained at 44 months. Predictors of surgical success included younger age, lower BMI, lower preoperative AHI, and greater degree of maxillary advancement.

On that basis, even if I was young, I would definitely not be looking at surgery as a first option. For it it be worth it to me, I would want to see much higher percentages.

49er