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At the risk of sounding ignorant, would someone please tell me what ASI is? And how do I measure it?

 

 

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Peggy B, It's not a silly question at all but probably the most important question of all,

The soft tissue at the back of the throat relaxes during sleep, lack of muscle tone and gravity then cause the airway to narrow resulting in vibration to cause snoring. If the airway continues to collapse an obstruction follows causing an apnea.

Partial closure of the airway results in decreased airflow and shallow breathing; this is often referred to as a hypopnoea.

When the airway is totally closed, breathing stops. The person will wake up enough to regain control of the upper airway, breathe again, and then fall back to sleep. These episodes will be in excess of 10 seconds each. This happens from a few to hundreds of times per night for people with obstructive sleep Apnea, but they usually don't remember waking.

  • Each obstruction deprives the body of oxygen and forces it to retain carbon dioxide that it would normally breathe out
  • As a result, the body's blood gases get out of balance, and the body is subjected to a 'toxic' environment
  • When the body sets off 'alarms' that it needs more oxygen, the brain wakes the sleeper, breathing resumes, and the individual falls back to sleep until the next obstruction occurs
  • These obstructions increase heart rate, raise blood pressure, and eventually blunt the body's automatic response system, resulting in increasingly more severe Apneas and hypopnoea
  • Continued disturbance to sleep diminish the quality of sleep, resulting in sleep deprivation

The number of Apneas and Hypopnoeas experienced determine the severity of the disorder (Apnea Hypopnoea Index - AHI).

Severities of Sleep Apnea

Most people stop breathing between 0-5 per hour. Anything over 5 is considered sleep apnea, it then is measured by severity and treatment is then commenced.

0-5 Normal

5-15 Mild

15-30+ Moderate

30+ Severe

So at your sleep study you would have got a AHI figure, of say, 30, so each night on you CPAP you should be able to see you AHI, which should be below 5.

 

Explained very well, Terry!

Terry Vella said:

Peggy B, It's not a silly question at all but probably the most important question of all,

The soft tissue at the back of the throat relaxes during sleep, lack of muscle tone and gravity then cause the airway to narrow resulting in vibration to cause snoring. If the airway continues to collapse an obstruction follows causing an apnea.

Partial closure of the airway results in decreased airflow and shallow breathing; this is often referred to as a hypopnoea.

When the airway is totally closed, breathing stops. The person will wake up enough to regain control of the upper airway, breathe again, and then fall back to sleep. These episodes will be in excess of 10 seconds each. This happens from a few to hundreds of times per night for people with obstructive sleep Apnea, but they usually don't remember waking.

  • Each obstruction deprives the body of oxygen and forces it to retain carbon dioxide that it would normally breathe out
  • As a result, the body's blood gases get out of balance, and the body is subjected to a 'toxic' environment
  • When the body sets off 'alarms' that it needs more oxygen, the brain wakes the sleeper, breathing resumes, and the individual falls back to sleep until the next obstruction occurs
  • These obstructions increase heart rate, raise blood pressure, and eventually blunt the body's automatic response system, resulting in increasingly more severe Apneas and hypopnoea
  • Continued disturbance to sleep diminish the quality of sleep, resulting in sleep deprivation

The number of Apneas and Hypopnoeas experienced determine the severity of the disorder (Apnea Hypopnoea Index - AHI).

Severities of Sleep Apnea

Most people stop breathing between 0-5 per hour. Anything over 5 is considered sleep apnea, it then is measured by severity and treatment is then commenced.

0-5 Normal

5-15 Mild

15-30+ Moderate

30+ Severe

So at your sleep study you would have got a AHI figure, of say, 30, so each night on you CPAP you should be able to see you AHI, which should be below 5.

 

Terri, Thank you so much. Ginny is correct, that was very well and thoroughly explained. One more question, if I might. Which number on my machine, Fisher and Paykel, Therma Smart, (which is HUGE, I might add) would be the AHI?

 

Again, thank you...

Peggy, I use a Resmed, I looked on the net, is there a model for the machine you have, thermo smart seems to be the tubing technology. Could I also suggest you may want to join sleepguides UK sister site (address below), you may get some more advice from people using F & P machines.

http://hope2sleepguide.co.uk

It is Sleep Style 600. Right on top. Sorry about that.

Peggy, have just had a look on the net and that machine doesn't seem to show AHI data on the screen, how long have you had it? I can show you how to download the data yourself from the simcard if you want and if that machine is capable, the software is free, you will need a card reader, like one from a digital camera, I think they cost about $40. Maybe before you do these things, put them down as questions to ask. Sorry I can't be of more help. Are you due for another machine soon? It does look rather large.

Thank you for your help. I really appreciate you taking the time to help me.

 

I've had this machine about 1.5 years. And From what I've read, you can only get a new one every 5 years, per insurance regulations.

 

I would appreciate that web address.

Peggy, it's free, so hopefully will work on your machine, let me know if you need any help with it. It is fairly easy to import once you have downloaded the software but like I said you will need a card reader

 

http://sourceforge.net/projects/sleepyhead/

Thank you Terry. I will check it out. You have a great night and I hope you sleep like a baby :o)

Thanks Peggy, I'm in Australia so I had a good nights sleep last night, it's Monday morning at 10.00am here, you have a good nights sleep though.

well then, let me re-phrase that....You have a wonderful day! 

And thanks again.....

Thanks Peggy

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