Comments on: Apnea

By: clean your cpap

clean your cpap — Sun, 01 Apr 2007 03:28:53 +0000

CPAP surely beats dying by a thousand miles. As I was reading through the comments, and I noticed that some people are not aware that apnea is also caused by anatomical deformities and obstructions in the airway. And other than surgery, CPAP is very effective in dealing with it. Just make sure you clean your CPAP regularly to prevent yourself from getting infections and complications dur to an unclean CPAP.

By: pigilito

pigilito — Mon, 29 Jan 2007 12:45:44 +0000

Have you tried playing the Digeridoo? Seriously, a seemingly well-designed study performed here in Switzerland and published in the British Medical Journal found that regular playing can improve moderate sleep apnea.

From the abstract:

Regular didgeridoo playing is an effective treatment alternative well accepted by patients with moderate obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome.

The article is here: http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/332/7536/266

By: corwin

corwin — Thu, 04 Jan 2007 22:58:58 +0000

Let me make a couple of pro active suggestions.There are 3 main causes osf SA.Brain damage(Unlikely);upper respiratory blockage (enlarged turbinates caaused by -usually-allergies) and neck circumfrence.Usually,when the patients neck is greater than 17 1/2 for a male or an inch less for a female the neck will sag unde4r the weeight during REM sleep when the muscles relax.There are some meds specifically for this(provigil comes to mind),but I like to work on the patients weight.Almost all the patients I’ve had on CPAP have a waist greater than 40 “.They’re either diabetic or on their way.And it’s biochemically harder to lose weight.
I like to reach an agreement that they’ll walk 20′ 6days /week and start them on a phentermine solutionof 10 mg/day.COupled with the walking,the patients lose 6-#/month.As their weight decreases,so does their snoring As an aside ,a diet doc will write for 37.5 mg/day of phentermine,so 10 is a minimal does.(Of course EKG,thyroid should be checked,but it does give thepatient a chance to get of the CPAP,along with the other benefits of weight loss

By: Xrlq

Xrlq — Wed, 03 Jan 2007 16:08:19 +0000

If she does, I’ll start gasping and snoring again, resulting in me getting crappy sleep and her getting none. A power outage would produce the same result, I suppose.

By: BR

BR — Wed, 03 Jan 2007 15:51:58 +0000

Glad you got it diagnosed and are attempting to treat it!

But what happens if your wife turns off the gizmo while you’re sleeping?

By: the friendly grizzly

the friendly grizzly — Mon, 01 Jan 2007 18:32:45 +0000

I have apnea, and was issued a machine. I hate the damned thing, but it has helped a bit. I won’t say Night and Day, nor will I say You are the one, only you beneath the moon and under…

Sorry. Got carried away.

I won’t say it’s night and day, but there is some improvement.

By: Xrlq

Xrlq — Sun, 31 Dec 2006 18:57:56 +0000

I’m sure AS and I have a lot more in common than that. For example, neither of us are sexually attracted to Barbara Boxer or Arianna Huffington.

And yes, the difference between untreated apnea and a CPAP is indeed night and day.

By: jjv

jjv — Sun, 31 Dec 2006 16:28:30 +0000

I note that you now have something else in common with Andrew Sullivan besides blogging. I understand from friends who have used the machine that it is like night and day to how they feel the next day.

By: RAMMER

RAMMER — Sat, 30 Dec 2006 17:16:29 +0000

nk, anyone can have sleep apnea. One of my colleagues had it and he’s in fine shape. His cause was just the way his palate and uvula were shaped. I encourage my wife to wake me if I snore enough to bother her. Just that has been enough to make morning better.

By: Old Coot

Old Coot — Sat, 30 Dec 2006 04:35:40 +0000

A good friend was able to toss his CPAP machine when he started using Breath Right Nasal Strips at night. Clayton Cramer was recently blogging (www.claytoncramer.com) about his use of the strips vs. using the machine. Maybe worth a try. Good luck.