today my ENT told me he didn't think i had apnea but instead possibly upper airway resistance syndrome.
anyone know anything about this?

it's when the airway is only partially blocked, instead of complete as with apnea, and does not cause a drop in oxygen level (like apnea and hypopnea).  It can still cause interrupted sleep and result in daytime sleepiness.  It is treated with cpap.


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mom to 25 yr old with severe developmental disabilities
who has chronic insomnia & severe central apnea, & mild cheyne-stokes breathing
AHI 57; began Diamox 09-11-08 and cpap 10-03-08
full-face mask & Resmed Vantage AutoSet @ 10 with EPR 3

yes i think i understand the basics.  it's treated with all the same options as apnea i believe.
thanks
so it is not as dangerous as apnea?

Danib,

There is a lot about it on this site.  Put it URAS in the Google toolbar on the left.  I think moderator Pseudonym has URAS, PM her.  You'll see who has it when you pull up the posts.

Here is one of the first articles published on it.  There are 350 more now.  It is just a dangerous as apnea, except that you may not desaturate (I don't know if a lack of desaturation is the case however).  It still raises your blood pressure so therefore is hard on your cardiovascular system.

The link below is from PubMed, where all peer reviewed medical studies and research published througout the world are archived.  Put Upper Airway Resistance Syndrome in the search field at the top of the page and you will pull up the other 350 articles.  If you have a question about any of them, let me know.  I talk medical speak.

The Upper Airway Resistance Syndrome

Vicki


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That which does not kill you makes you stronger-Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich must of had apnea.

thank you Vicki, i do not talk medical speak at all.  haha. :)
i will research it some.  what does desaturate mean?  (oxygen levels dont' drop?)
i do not have high blood pressure.  mine has always been low that i have some slight elevation lately.

"De" means "the opposite of"

"Saturate" in chemistry means to keep adding something to a liquid until no more of it can be dissolved in the liquid.  Think of dissolving sugar or salt in water.  There comes a point when no more can be dissolved into the water.  But in this case, we are talking about dissolving oxygen (O2) into water.

Normal O2 saturation in blood is > 95%.  So to desaturate is to drop below that level.  If you start to drop (and especially if you drop below 90%) your body and particularly your brain, both of which depend on O2 to function, begin to not function so well.  Desaturation is called hypoxia (hypo meaning decrease).  Over time, hypoxia damages your organs and your brain, sometimes irreversibly.

Not all people with OSA desaturate either, BTW.

Vicki


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That which does not kill you makes you stronger-Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich must of had apnea.

ok, thanks, & i guess i would know this from a sleep study right?
i still haven't gotten anyone to explain mine.

Yes, your oxygen levels are on your sleep study.

Vicki


_________________
That which does not kill you makes you stronger-Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich must of had apnea.