Newbie here. I am pretty darn sure I have sleep apnea. I am a horrible snorer, to the point where my husband sleeps in the other room half the night to get sufficient rest. Hubby has heard me stop breathing at times, and start again, gasping for air. I am tired ALL the time, and if I sit down for anything that requires be to be quiet and listen (watch TV, attend church, sit in a classroom), I am out cold.

Here's the problem. I had a home sleep study last night, with a pulse oximeter (I think) There was a cannula and a finger monitor attached to a palm sized piece of equipment with a USB port so that the tech could download the info. Last night, my hubby reported that my snoring was significantly reduced, and I did not appear to gasp for air.

The reason why I am worried is that about 7 years ago, we went through the same process, where I was monitored at home with the cannula and the pulse oximeter for two nights. My snoring significantly improved during those two nights, and the technicians determined that I did not have sleep apnea.

Any advice? Have you heard about a sleep study giving false or inaccurate readings? Thank you for your time.

barkingfrog wrote:

Newbie here. I am pretty darn sure I have sleep apnea. I am a horrible snorer, to the point where my husband sleeps in the other room half the night to get sufficient rest. Hubby has heard me stop breathing at times, and start again, gasping for air. I am tired ALL the time, and if I sit down for anything that requires be to be quiet and listen (watch TV, attend church, sit in a classroom), I am out cold.

Here's the problem. I had a home sleep study last night, with a pulse oximeter (I think) There was a cannula and a finger monitor attached to a palm sized piece of equipment with a USB port so that the tech could download the info. Last night, my hubby reported that my snoring was significantly reduced, and I did not appear to gasp for air.

The reason why I am worried is that about 7 years ago, we went through the same process, where I was monitored at home with the cannula and the pulse oximeter for two nights. My snoring significantly improved during those two nights, and the technicians determined that I did not have sleep apnea.

Any advice? Have you heard about a sleep study giving false or inaccurate readings? Thank you for your time.

Did you sleep on your back or your side last night?

I am sure that there will be times when the data is somewhat innaccurate, however that may only be for borderline patients (for instance, borderline normal/mild, mild/moderate, etc). Some of these devices are FDA approved, which means that a diagnosis of OSA can be made from the data. If that is true, then the data has to be relatively accurate, right?

Why the home sleep study rather than an in-lab overnight sleep evaluation? And was it a TRUE home sleep study or "just" an overnight oximetry?

It sounds like, in your specific case, a home sleep study is totally insufficient to get an accurate picture of your sleep. You may well desat but not enough nor long enough to meet the criteria for oxygen supplementation which is about all that the overnight oximetry is really good for. You could still be experiencing apneas and hypopneas and desaturating but just not desaturating enough to meet the oximetry criteria.


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Some people are like Slinkies... Not really good for anything, but they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.
Resmed VPAP Auto. Humidaire 3i, Simplicity & Micro masks, ResScan 3.4, S8 ResLink, Embla oximeter.

barkingfrog just because you didn't snore as much doesn't mean you, do or don't have sleep apnea, and if it was just a over night pulse-ox all that is going to show is your O2 saturations during the night. And like CronhieToo said that doesn't mean you don't have Sleep Apnea either., You might want to have you husband talk with your doctor if he hasn't already, most doctors like to have  the information of a  person who has  actually observed the snoring and sleep habits of the patient first hand! You might also ask about having a in lab sleep study performed. I guess the bottom line is that you will just have to wait and see what the results are. But if they are negative and your not satisified then press for further testing, or see a different doctor. After all it is your health, and in the end you are the one responsible for it! If you feel you are not getting the proper treatment, well, then you do what you have to do to get it! Good Luck to You, I hope everything works out well, do keep us posted


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White Beard with a White Beard
Resmed VPAP Adapt SV Enhanced, HumidAire 2i, ResLink with Model 8000 Flex sensor Pulse Oximeter, and ResScan 3.5 software. Respironic EverFlo OPI Oxygen Concentrator 3 lpm
EEP 9.0, min PS 6.0, max PS 16.0

RAM sleep, I slept on my side, where I usually sleep.

Thank you all so much. This is so new to me, and I really want some answers.

Frog, most of us (but not all) experience most of our apnea events whilst on our back or in REM sleep.


_________________
Some people are like Slinkies... Not really good for anything, but they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.
Resmed VPAP Auto. Humidaire 3i, Simplicity & Micro masks, ResScan 3.4, S8 ResLink, Embla oximeter.

barkingfrog wrote:

RAM sleep, I slept on my side, where I usually sleep.

Thank you all so much. This is so new to me, and I really want some answers.

Get the in-lab sleep study, if possible.