Cpap machine and surgery

I got my cpap almost a month ago but have been having non stop mask issues and have hardly worn it more than a few hours a night. I go on Tuesday night for another sleep test. My question is, in any of your experience have you had to be compliant with the machine for a certain length of time before surgery?

And a second question that may not have an answer, my machine was giving off a burning smell through my mask last night after about 20 minutes being on. It is on a solid surface and clear of anything that might obstruct it, filter is brand new, has distilled water. I'm going to call my pharmacy in the morning but just wondered if anyone has experienced that with their machine? It's been one big hassle with this stupid thing!!

I thought the compliance was to keep our drivers license
No one has spoken to me again about the sleep apnea since the Sleep Doctor has seen me twice. the last visit with him he said he will see my 1 year from my surgery, but that every 3 months I need to bring the chip from the machine to my machine provider and they download the info to forward to him to confirm compliance.

Although I'm still a little concerned because my Fitbit One also tracks my sleep cycles and it doesn't seem to me I'm receiving much benefit from the CPAP machine. I use it every night and all night long but my Fitbit still tells me I've woken no less than 15 times in a night for the last 3 weeks.

Hmm. Maybe the hospital only requires us to send in any sleep study reports and that's it? I haven't even done that yet, but no one has asked me about it aside from the nurse who asked if I had apnea. Maybe the surgeon is the one who checks on that. My provider never said a word about bringing in the chip for compliance checks, weird!! I better check on that to make sure I don't suddenly get a letter in the mail from the MTO. 

I wonder if, even with the machine, people still wake up but just a lesser amount of time than without the machine? Do you feel well rested or does it not make much difference in how you feel? 

 

Hi Katie,

People normally move during sleep, and sometimes come close to waking up during their sleep, but they don't stop breathing like people with sleep apnea.  Before I joined the registry, I had a shocking sleep study done that showed I was waking up/having an episode of apnea more than once every 2 minutes and my blood oxygen saturation rate was below 90% most of the time (that's when they'd put your on oxygen in a hospital), and once fell to 67%, which is almost dead.  Your heart has to work very hard to restart beating after being deprived of oxygen like that, and in every apnea episode, which is why some people don't wake up, including one poster on this forum, who needed CPR from her husband to keep her alive until paramedics arrived.   

I used to sometimes wake up gasping and choking for air, which is the world's most unpleasant feeling - you think you are dying, and some people do die suddenly from sleep apnea, as well as getting enlarged hearts/heart disease, or having a stroke.

During  my first 5 hour 'night' with the CPAP, I experienced my first restful sleep in 20+ years, suddenly I woke up more rested than when I had gone to bed.  In fact, it was the first time in 20 years that I felt that I had truly slept well at all.  If you aren't able to use your machine for long enough each night, you probably don't notice any such profound differences, so it's really important to find a mask that fits properly and a machine that isn't sending up smoke signals.

One test for whether or not you are likely to have sleep apnea is simply that the circumference of your neck is 16" or more, which is why most WLS patients get tested.

I brought in both my initial report from my sleep study and the report of my titration study, which told the sleep MD how high to set my machine.  That I didn't have to go to a lab they recommended probably saved me time and a great deal of hassle, since I found one lab - North of lake Wilcox on Yonge - The York Regions Sleep Disorders Centre - http://www.yorkregionsleep.com/index.asp which allows shift workers and insomniacs like myself to come in one day of the week as late as they choose and sleep all day, if necessary.  I went in at 3:30am.  Most labs want you asleep by 11:30pm at the latest and wake you up at 7am at the latest, whether or not you could sleep at all after you got hooked up to all the wiring.

Jenn.  :)

I'm not sure who is doing the CPAP/Mask for you, but I went through Medigas (refered from Cambridge) and I ended up trying 3 different masks because I was having issues with them. They were really good about making sure I was as comfortable as possible with the mask. I'm sure they will work with ya to get one that works well for you.

I'm working with a home care department inside an independent pharmacy in my town. They were great at the start but they won't let me take home masks to test out, so I can only test them in the store and then hope they are ok when I get home - hence the constant mask problems! Maybe I should look in to where the nearest Medigas is!

The Medigas here is just a satelite office but it had everything you would need. They even had a chair that reclined to laying postion to test if there would be any air leakage.

you said you were going for the 2nd sleep study right? that's the sleep titration study and you have to bring your mask and hose with you and part of that study is to confirm you have the right mask and it's working properly. they will change your mask if it isn't.

Just saying, but Medigas wanted to rent me a CPAP machine while it was determined for sure that I didn't need an APAP machine, while Shopper's Drug Mart Home Health Care Centre lent me the same CPAP machine I purchased for SIX WEEKS for FREE.  The respiratory therapist also guessed correctly that when I told him that a medical supply place had told me an APAP would cost an extra thousand dollars, compared to a CPAP, that I had been to a Medigas location.  He said their prices were higher than other places.

Jenn.  :)

When I went in to make my second appointment for the sleep clinic, I told her that I was going though all the testing for the gastric bypass. She had told me that the surgeon will want me to have the CPAP machine and using it the way its suppose to be used for at least 6 weeks before the surgeon will even touch me. I have had mine for almost a month and i have used it every night for 5-9 hours. When I got my machine the woman that sold it to me told me that you need to use it for at LEAST 4 hours or there is no point in using it. I haven't had any issues with mine except for when I was sick with a cold (i only have the one that goes over the nose).. PS I do feel a lot better with using my machine.. I'm waking up feeling more refreshed.