Why can’t I tolerate my CPAP?
- Posted on: Mar 12 2019
If you have been diagnosed with sleep apnea, there is a good chance you have been prescribed a CPAP machine. You may try and try but you just can’t wear it. You may try switching masks, try different CPAP machines, use chin straps, try sleeping pills, program a ramp up in pressure, all to no avail.
Why a CPAP May Not Work
There are two main reasons why CPAP may not work for an individual patient.
1. Mild sleep apnea – Patients diagnosed with mild sleep apnea typically cannot tolerate CPAP. This is simply because the cumbersome nature of the treatment causes more sleep disruption than the actual sleep apnea does. These patients are better treated with procedural therapy or possibly an oral appliance. Frequently, there is a better option for these patients. A simple 15 minute advanced balloon sinuplasty procedure in our office, possibly combined with soft palate stiffening, can open the airway and may cure the sleep apnea!
2. Blocked nose – It makes sense that you can’t pump pressure through a closed hole doesn’t it? Despite this common sense notion, many sleep doctors will put a mask over the face of a patient with severe anatomical nasal and sinus issues and expect this therapy to work. When it doesn’t work, they just crank up the pressure, or use Bilevel pressure (BiPAP) and use chin straps to try to overcome the nasal blockage. The pressure is so high it feels suffocating. It can leaks and lose effectiveness. It can also blows air on the patient’s eyes. A simple 15 minute advanced balloon sinuplasty procedure in our office can open the nasal airway. This allows the patient to comfortably use a simple nasal pillow CPAP, at a low, tolerable, and effective pressure. In some cases, this procedure, along with a soft palate stiffening procedure, may cure the sleep apnea and no CPAP will then be needed. In other cases, this nasal procedure can allow the patient to alternatively use an oral appliance instead of the CPAP therapy.
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If you have been diagnosed with sleep apnea and find that you can’t use your CPAP come see us for a consultation at Sinus and Snoring Specialists to learn about what options may be available for you.
Tagged with: CPAP alternatives
Posted in: CPAP, Sleep Apnea, Snoring
