If you have obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), the most common type of sleep apnea, then CPAP therapy is the gold standard in treatment. It’s available from the sleep experts at The Insomnia and Sleep Institute of Arizona, where we also offer alternatives like the Inspire implant. Implants can be helpful for the rare patients who do not find relief after properly using CPAP therapy. However, everyone is required to try to adhere to the CPAP treatment before other forms of therapy can become available. If you suspect you have OSA but aren’t sure, the first step is scheduling a consultation with our outcome-driven team.

The most common sign of OSA is snoring. However, for those who don’t share a bed, you may not know whether you snore or not. Other signs include waking up gasping in the middle of the night but, again, you may not remember this the next day. Subtler signs of OSA can include feeling fatigued the next day even though it seems like you got enough sleep. OSA can affect your mood, job performance, and relationships, too. If you do have OSA, your first meeting with our sleep experts will be with someone who can diagnose sleep disorders. The next step will be testing and treatment.

CPAP Adherence

CPAP in Phoenix and on a global scale requires adhering to best practices. This means that your CPAP machine will track how often you’re using it while asleep and will “report back.” This is a must in order for insurance policies to cover your CPAP therapy. A minimum of four hours per night using CPAP is the standard. If you do not use your CPAP for at least four hours nightly, you will be considered not in adherence to your treatment program.

There are many factors that go into determining how well a person adheres to Phoenix CPAP therapy, including the age of the patient, the CPAP machine and accessories selected, and fit. However, a new study from Yale discovered that those who are “morning people” tend to use their CPAP machines longer compared to their night owl counterparts. Researchers initially set out to see if our biological clock affects CPAP adherence.

Morning Birds and CPAP

The full study can be found in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society. The investigation team also undertook a secondary analysis of the existing Apnea Positive Pressure Long-Term Efficacy clinical trial. The Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire was used for participants in a randomized study. The three types of categories included morning, evening, and intermediate. Data was collected over six months via a linear mixed model, adjusting for differences like sex, marital status, and age. A mediation analysis of sleep duration, depression, and “weekend catch-up sleep” along with other factors was also considered.

The majority of people in the study were obese men struggling with severe OSA. Being obese and male heightens your risk of having OSA. Of the participants, 44 percent were morning people, 47 percent were intermediate, and eight percent were evening people. Those defined as morning people had the shortest sleep on the weekends at 7.3 hours on average. They don’t “catch up” on sleep during the weekends, and doing so has long been known to be an important sleep hygiene best practice.

Abiding By CPAP

Those who were morning people also used their CPAP machine 40 minutes longer compared to those in the intermediate chronotype group. The researchers say, “Morning chronotype is associated with a clinically meaningful increase in CPAP adherence compared with other chronotypes.” However, 40 minutes can be meaningful. After all, since Phoenix CPAP adherence is “just” four hours per night, 40 minutes can make the difference between adhere to CPAP treatment—or not.

When you don’t adhere to CPAP treatment, not only might you lose insurance coverage but you’re also not getting the most benefits. The researchers note that a better understanding of CPAP adherence is a must in order to take steps in improving it. Being a morning person might be one predictor in how well a person will use CPAP treatment, but trying to force yourself to be a morning person probably isn’t the best strategy.

We will work with you to determine the best Phoenix CPAP therapy for you and support you throughout the process. If you think you have OSA or have already been diagnosed and want to start treatment, contact The Insomnia and Sleep Institute by calling the clinic or filling out the online contact form.