Cpap Therapy

Several months ago, I was at my annual checkup at my doctor’s office. What started out as just a routine office visit was the beginning in a life changing experience.

He asked if I snored. I had just gotten over a cold, so I knew that I had some snoring episodes recently. He had noted that my weight had gone up and he wanted me to visit a nutritionist to see how she could help me get back to a normal weight.

Then he asked if I got tired during the day. Thinking back, I had been feeling as if my energy levels were low over the last few months. With those two answers, he gave me a referral to a pulmonologist to make sure everything was okay.

At that doctor’s office, he asked me similar questions. But after the visit with my regular doctor,

There are other treatments available, but this is usually the first step in treatment and works on a large number of patients.

There are many kinds of CPAP machines and it did take some trial and error before finding the one that worked best for me. Once I was comfortable with my machine, I was brought back to the sleep center for another study to make sure it was working properly.

There are some possible side effects from CPAP therapy. Most of them area caused by the air being pushed into the airway or the mask not fitting properly. With some trial and error, the right mask can be found or adjustments to the machine can lessen the side effects. Additionally, the use of a humidifier can reduce the dryness. Some CPAP machines even have settings that vary the amount of air pressure or have an attachment that adds moisture to the air before it reaches your mouth and nose.

There are two derivations of the basic CPAP machine. The BiPAP (Bi-level Positive Airway Pressure Machine) and the APAP (Auto-Titrating Continuous Positive Airway Pressure Machine). They work similarly and a discussion with your doctor can help you determine if these other CPAP machines will work better for