Sleep Apnea Treatment

Question by : 78 Year old woman refuses to use CPAP or nebulizer.?
My 78 year old mother has COPD and sleep apnea. She has been prescribed a nebulizer, which she refuses to use. She also has been given a CPAP machine that she will not use either.

She has severe difficulty breathing even a few steps. I do mean severe difficulty breathing. She has also been given oxygen therapy via a nasal cannula. Unfortunately she becomes so terribly out of breath that she breathes through her mouth so the oxygen is of no real benefit. She becomes so weak that she nearly collapses.

What are the repercussions of not taking these nebulizer treatments or using the CPAP machine?

She is unable to sleep in her bed because if she lays down she cannot breathe. She has not been honest with her doctor about any of this. He evidently believes she is taking her breathing treatments and using her CPAP machine.

She has severe pitting edema as well, for which she has been prescribed lasix with no significant relief.

I anticipate that she will have an episode one day of respiratory failure. I am needless to say at my wits end trying to figure out just what to do.

I do not think she understands just how significant these treatments are and the repercussions that this could all cause. Any suggestions?
I should have stated that she does indeed have a BiPap. She flatly refuses to use the BiPap machine. She does not believe that she has Sleep Apnea. She feels that everyone that goes for a sleep study is automatically diagnosed with sleep apnea. I have tried to talk to her on numerous occasions about this to no avail.

She uses the oxygen but it really isn’t doing her any good considering she is unable to close her mouth to breath through the nasal cannula.

I tried once again to convince her of the benefits of using the nebulizer yesterday but she is adamant about not using it either.

I am contemplating contacting her physician without her knowledge to see if perhaps he could intervene and get her to understand the severity of her condition. Thanks for your responses. It helps to know that I am not on the wrong track with this and that my suspicions are accurate.

Best answer:

Answer by Serietah
I’m sorry to be so blunt, but quite plainly she will die without treatment. She’s an adult, so as long as she is of sound mind, she is legally able to refuse treatments. As long as she understands that by not following the doctors’ orders she will die, there’s not much you can do. She may just need her doctor to really sit down and explain everything to her again. Good luck!

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Question by jerry w: My four year seems to have sleep apnea. And she is overweight we are working on all of this?
by trying to help her lose weight and she is going to a sleep study. the doctor will then decide if she needs her tonsils out. My husband has sleep apnea. I am concerned for her to sleep.
How dangerous is this condition for a four year old. Yes we are working on the weight and she is still getting testing done. My question is …is there a chance children can pass away with this?
I may be to worried about something that can be easily fixed with diet and surgery. I find myself going to check on her …thru the night.

Best answer:

Answer by Minileo
It is not unusual for chubby 4 year old, to have large tonsils and adenoids resulting in snoring and short periods of sleep apnea. As the child grows the size of the tonsils and adenoids will also regress. The only problem is, regression to an adult sized tonsil and adenoid is not complete until the child is in her teens.
Short periods of apnea is tolerable, but prolonged apnea lasting more than 15 secs. is a problem, since tissue oxygenation drops as a result of poor lung ventilation. To compensate for this poor oxygenation, the heart has to increase its output by increasing its rate of pumping. If this persist for years, the heart’s size will enlarge, and because of extra work the heart tires and starts to fail.
Keep close touch with your pediatrician and sleep center.

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Question by Mama B: Sleep Apnea, Post Nasal Drip, Asthma, Gurd, Acid Reflux in 1 year old?
My son has been snoring scince he was born. Lately he has been waking up SCREAMING in the middle of the night uncontrolably then end up finally calming himself down after a few. His nose has been really runny due to teething. At first I thought that maybe he was having night mares. But the other day when he woke up SCREAMING his lips were blue, and he had a blue tint… but he was under a blanket and was fully dressed so I knew he wasn’t cold.

His doctor’s office is closed so I have to wait til tomorrow, but I was wondering if anyone else has had any experience with their children and these kind of symptoms. I am confused and scared, please help!

Best answer:

Answer by Peter Salway
If its a breathing problem, firstly, I would go to the hospital. Anything wrong with a baby is a priority case and would be accepted in A&E. If you really can’t do that then…

Go into the bathroom, with a shower. Turn the shower to full and allow the room to fill with steam. This should relax the airways.

but seriously I’d go to the hospital.

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Question by katie b: One year old may have Sleep Apnea? I need advice…?
My son is one and a half years old. He s a healthy boy, besides the fat that he was a bad virus right now that is causing him so much mucus, and even nose bleeds from his nose being clogged. Also, he is coughing. I took him to the Dr’s today, and the doc did a strip test on his throat, and said he needs no antibiotics. As I sit next to him right now as he sleeps, watching him snore is scary. He stops breathing in his sleep! Then theres times where I can see his little belly going in and out as if he “trying” to take in a breath, but theres no sounds/snore coming out of his mouth or nose. It seems like there is something blocking his airway. Now, I have noticed these symptoms before, but not this noticiable. Any words of wisdom, support, or advice? Thanks…
Im a scared first time mom.

Best answer:

Answer by Beverly
I would seek a second doctor’s opinion. And if they tell you the same thing, you could always seek advice from a Sleep therapist or Sleep Rehabilitation center. Sleep Apnea is nothing to brush off, especially with a child. I would ask as many health professionals needed until you get an answer that you feel comfortable with.

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Question by adored: My five year old daughter is scared of her upcoming surgery – how can I comfort her- what should I say?
My five year old daughter is having Tonsillectomy and Adenoidectomy in two weeks. It’s a common procedure so I’m not too worried about it. She knows that it is going to happen but she doesn’t want me to talk to her about it. I’m just wondering if anyone has any ideas of what I can say to comfort her into talking about it and so maybe she will not be too worried about it?
(She has sleep apnea and snores very loudly while sleeping so the surgery is a must)
thanks everyone for all of the great ideas so far – you’ve really helped!

Best answer:

Answer by mdoud01
Talk to your doctor and see if there is a support group type thing for children and surgery. Maybe if she talks to other children who have had surgery (any type) maybe she would feel better.

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