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What Does My Lab Test Report Indicate?
Question: what does this mean? am I waking up 51 times an hr?What does my lab test report indicate?
Brief Answer:
Read below
Detailed Answer:
I read your question carefully and I understans your concern.
As the conclusion of the study indicates there is a respiratory disorder. Those numbers of 51/h for ODI (or 53.5/h for AHI - hypopnea - reduced flow episodes) represent the number of times the oxygen level in the blood drops by at least 3%. That doesn't mean that you wake up 51 times though, sleep efficiency is described as within acceptable limits, meaning that those episodes do not lead to sleep disruption, not all of them at least.
The frequency of episodes though is very high, an AHI index of 53 is considered severe and given the history of nonrefreshing sleep and nocturnal choking, apneic episodes are possible (apnea means interruption of respiratory flow). So some intervention is certainly needed. If you are overweight I believe that is the first issue to be addressed because that alone may lead to improvement. Otherwise if obesity is not an issue and there are no other correctable causes (such as upper airway abnormalities - deviated septum, nasal polyps etc) then the use of a CPAP machine may be considered. For that a trial study called split somnography, which first records sleep for 2 hours of spontaneous breathing (like this study you've had) and than records it under a CPAP machine (a device which maintains a positive pressure in your airways), may be done initially.
I hope to have been of help.
Read below
Detailed Answer:
I read your question carefully and I understans your concern.
As the conclusion of the study indicates there is a respiratory disorder. Those numbers of 51/h for ODI (or 53.5/h for AHI - hypopnea - reduced flow episodes) represent the number of times the oxygen level in the blood drops by at least 3%. That doesn't mean that you wake up 51 times though, sleep efficiency is described as within acceptable limits, meaning that those episodes do not lead to sleep disruption, not all of them at least.
The frequency of episodes though is very high, an AHI index of 53 is considered severe and given the history of nonrefreshing sleep and nocturnal choking, apneic episodes are possible (apnea means interruption of respiratory flow). So some intervention is certainly needed. If you are overweight I believe that is the first issue to be addressed because that alone may lead to improvement. Otherwise if obesity is not an issue and there are no other correctable causes (such as upper airway abnormalities - deviated septum, nasal polyps etc) then the use of a CPAP machine may be considered. For that a trial study called split somnography, which first records sleep for 2 hours of spontaneous breathing (like this study you've had) and than records it under a CPAP machine (a device which maintains a positive pressure in your airways), may be done initially.
I hope to have been of help.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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