S
SleepQuestion
Guest
About four years ago I was diagnosed with moderate OSA in a lab study with AHI of about 17. I did the study based my AME's recommendation based on BMI etc rather than any perceptible symptoms. Got a CPAP and have been on SI ever since (currently 2nd class medical, but 3rd would be fine).
The CPAP is fine at home but I travel to back country areas a lot where it is very hard to stay compliant.
Worked my weight down from 170+ to 155 to get my BMI down to 24 and have held it there for about a year, started competitive running, and recently got fitted with an oral appliance. Because of Covid I opted for a home study this time (Alice NightOne device) via an online service to evaluate my progress.
The report came back with an AHI of 2 and a conclusion that "The study does not demonstrate sleep apnea."
However, it also notes:
I'm trying to figure out what to do with this result from an FAA standpoint before I talk to my sleep doctor. Given my prior history, will the FAA assume a "high degree of clinical suspicion"? Is the fact that I'm at an AHI of ~9 in one position going to be problematic as long as the average is << 5?
I can certainly spend the $ and do another lab or home study to try to get a stronger result. On the other hand, I don't want to inadvertently do something that will complicate my situation.
Any advice greatly appreciated.
The CPAP is fine at home but I travel to back country areas a lot where it is very hard to stay compliant.
Worked my weight down from 170+ to 155 to get my BMI down to 24 and have held it there for about a year, started competitive running, and recently got fitted with an oral appliance. Because of Covid I opted for a home study this time (Alice NightOne device) via an online service to evaluate my progress.
The report came back with an AHI of 2 and a conclusion that "The study does not demonstrate sleep apnea."
However, it also notes:
- "This home sleep study was technically limited by intermittent pulse oximeter signal loss and signal characteristics suggesting a high degree of sleep fragmentation and wakefulness during the recording." (I wake up tangled in wires several times, although it also seemed that the pulse ox lost signal a lot even when I was holding still just looking at it)
- "There was limited time spent in the supine position which may have led to an underrepresentation of the degree of sleep disordered breathing." (I had about 57 mins of the study supine with 9 events vs several hours on left and right with only a couple events total in those positions. I rarely sleep on my back.)
I'm trying to figure out what to do with this result from an FAA standpoint before I talk to my sleep doctor. Given my prior history, will the FAA assume a "high degree of clinical suspicion"? Is the fact that I'm at an AHI of ~9 in one position going to be problematic as long as the average is << 5?
I can certainly spend the $ and do another lab or home study to try to get a stronger result. On the other hand, I don't want to inadvertently do something that will complicate my situation.
Any advice greatly appreciated.