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Re: Optimum pressure caveats II

Posted by SGS on February 13, 2003 at 11:55:23:

In Reply to: Optimum pressure caveats II posted by Sleepyhead on February 13, 2003 at 07:14:55:

1. throw stones at will. I wouldn't call it an experiment so much as I was playing with a pulse oximeter and seeinh how long it would take to approximate a severe OSA desaturation. I was very surprised by the results being so mild after such a long time (what I should do is try it without air in my lungs). I did hyperventilate and I'm also trained to hold my breath- but my baseline 02 is close to 100 anyway (and I didn't measure CO2- so I don't know). I don't think I'm a good example for OSA at all. My point in this whole discussion is really that HB reflex can't play too much of a role in OSA because a full lung of air breath hold isn't really that bad. It's the apnoea at the beginning of inhalation that causes the problems and desaturations. The extreme desaturation compared to mine is because your lungs are fairly empty and thus blood gases cannot be replaced (it may also be my fairly efficient pulmonary system).

2. Obstructive Events occur immediately due to airway collapse bought about by pressure imbalance at the beginning of inhalation. People are stuglling to breath in past a blockage.

3. The HR reflex ought to play a role when ascending from depth. But apparently the reflex is weak and won't save you from embolism. Really not my area of knowledge this...

4. Every AutoCPAP manufacturer has their own jealously guarded algorithm for how their machines calculate pressure. How exactly your particlaur model calculates pressure is a mystery to me.

It they get these machines right we won't have people complaining of over pressure, as soon as you wake the machine will sense this and turn off (Remote sensing of EEG is my hope (wake, sleep, REM, discrimination). You don't need CPAP when awake- but unfortunately it's the only time you can subjectively experience CPAP pressure.

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