NY NY - Robert Mayer, 46, Dix Hills, 14 Jun 2013 - # 8

[Born2succeed]

Oh and fyi...I am not overweight by anyone's standards.

 

[Philigumbo]

Disappearing without the sleep apnea machine is a huge strike against leaving voluntarily. Sleep apnea often has a greater impact on overweight people, which Rob is not. It is also compounded by excessive drinking. I'm a very heavy snorer and I've been known to have a cocktail or two. . My dad has the machine. He lives with me. I can tell when he uses the machine and when he doesnt. IMO Rob would not leave it behind.

Respectfully, I beg to differ...I see patients all the time who refuse to use the machine, and would gladly never see it again. They complain of claustrophobia, discomfort, and as being too noisy. I would not necessarily believe the CPAP is something RM would be packing first and lugging around...

 

[Born2succeed]

Clipped from the link i provided a couple of posts up "The overall risk of death during the study period was 3.2 times higher among those with severe sleep apnea compared with those without sleep apnea at baseline, after adjusting for other risk factors such as age, sex, and*body mass index."

 

[To Kill a Mockingbird]

This case demonstrates the truth of Machiavelli’s observation

 

[Born2succeed]

Respectfully, I beg to differ...I see patients all the time who refuse to use the machine, and would gladly never see it again. They complain of claustrophobia, discomfort, and as being too noisy. I would not necessarily believe the CPAP is something RM would be packing first and lugging around...

Yes, it is uncomfortable, embarrassing and noisy. Would I panick if I forgot it one night? Probably not. If I was planning on purposely leaving for an extended unknown period of time??? You bet your life I would! They do not come cheap and even if your lucky enough to have good insurance that will pay for it, you still have to pay a large portion and the insurance companies will not just replace it because you left it behind. Life threatening or not....most. likely you would have to pay for the whole bill.

 

[animlzrule]

Respectfully, I beg to differ...I see patients all the time who refuse to use the machine, and would gladly never see it again. They complain of claustrophobia, discomfort, and as being too noisy. I would not necessarily believe the CPAP is something RM would be packing first and lugging around...

I agree. 1 out of 5 people has sleep apnea. The majority of those for whom CPAP is recommended, in my experience, use their machine irregularly at best. It takes some perseverance getting used to the machine and many don't stick it out long enough (sometimes as long as 6-8 weeks of regular use) to realize the benefits. And I know just from my own family, although both my father and BIL have apnea and are supposed to use the machine, they don't. And I'm 99% sure they wouldn't think to list it as one of their health issues. Many live with sleep apnea and suffer the consequences without giving it much thought. I don't think it's unusual in the slightest that someone leaving voluntarily wouldn't take a CPAP with them.

 

[To Kill a Mockingbird]

Looks like someone's life in the fast lane
came to an abrupt halt!

 

[CatFancier]

Finally something I know, sleep apnea! I have sleep apnea. I am an overweight kitten although when I lost quite a bit of weight, I still had sleep apnea.

Before I was diagnosed, my behavior was very off. I was panicked, sometimes paranoid, slept all the time but never felt rested. My doctor sent me to a psychiatrist and she prescribed me many meds over a long period of time that never helped.

Randomly, my son, only 6 at the time, was tested (kids symptoms are different than adults) and was positive for apnea. His pediatrician suggested I get tested since it tends to be a hereditary condition. I was shocked when I had severe apnea.

My headaches were the first to go once I got the machine, morning headaches are actually one of the strongest signs of apnea. I started to feel normal again, I started to dream for the first time in forever. I started to sleep shorter lengths but felt amazing.

I have traveled a day or two here and there without it and hate how I feel after not using it. I feel sluggish and the headache is back.

If one is compliant with c-pap, in my experience you wouldn't give it up. To those who never become compliant, there lifespan is an average of ten years shorter from the extra work their heart has to put out.

By the way, the machines require a prescription and cost a ton. Just picking up another isn't something you can easily do and if you did, you'd have to be a super-sleuth to figure out how to program it as they keep all that stuff on the downlow.

 

[Philigumbo]

Machine or no machine, it is not like he was going to die or stop breathing without it.

Respectfully, OSA (obstructive sleep apnea) can be deadly. Pre-surgical patients are screened for it before anesthesia. Some people (usually the morbidly obese, but not always) have a permanent tracheostomy to prevent hypoxic brain damage and/or death during sleep.

 

[CatFancier]

I agree. 1 out of 5 people has sleep apnea. The majority of those for whom CPAP is recommended, in my experience, use their machine irregularly at best. It takes some perseverance getting used to the machine and many don't stick it out long enough (sometimes as long as 6-8 weeks of regular use) to realize the benefits. And I know just from my own family, although both my father and BIL have apnea and are supposed to use the machine, they don't. And I'm 99% sure they wouldn't think to list it as one of their health issues. Many live with sleep apnea and suffer the consequences without giving it much thought. I don't think it's unusual in the slightest that someone leaving voluntarily wouldn't take a CPAP with them.

Very true for the non-compliant. I believe it was said it sat on his night stand or next to his bed? He's compliant or it would be in the trash or in the back of the closet. Once you're compliant, it's one of your best friends.

 

[CatFancier]

More on apnea...for those of you who don't understand how it works, an apnea event isn't recorded as one until you stop breathing for 20 seconds. In overnight testing, it is averaged how many times you do this. The lowest level of apnea scores at 15 events per hour. I fall under severe which is over 60 per hour. So, for me, in 60 minutes of sleep, I do not breathe for at least 1/3 of the time, each hour, every night. That makes for one tired puppy or kitten in my case.

It can also be obstructive where the back of your throat is the issue or it can be a central apnea which is a short circuit somewhere in the brain that causes it.

 

[Philigumbo]

Finally something I know, sleep apnea! I have sleep apnea. I am an overweight kitten although when I lost quite a bit of weight, I still had sleep apnea.

Before I was diagnosed, my behavior was very off. I was panicked, sometimes paranoid, slept all the time but never felt rested. My doctor sent me to a psychiatrist and she prescribed me many meds over a long period of time that never helped.

Randomly, my son, only 6 at the time, was tested (kids symptoms are different than adults) and was positive for apnea. His pediatrician suggested I get tested since it tends to be a hereditary condition. I was shocked when I had severe apnea.

My headaches were the first to go once I got the machine, morning headaches are actually one of the strongest signs of apnea. I started to feel normal again, I started to dream for the first time in forever. I started to sleep shorter lengths but felt amazing.

I have traveled a day or two here and there without it and hate how I feel after not using it. I feel sluggish and the headache is back.

If one is compliant with c-pap, in my experience you wouldn't give it up. To those who never become compliant, there lifespan is an average of ten years shorter from the extra work their heart has to put out.

By the way, the machines require a prescription and cost a ton. Just picking up another isn't something you can easily do and if you did, you'd have to be a super-sleuth to figure out how to program it as they keep all that stuff on the downlow.

Thanks for sharing! An overnight sleep study is usually required at a sleep clinic to get one paid for by insurance, and if it goes by the wayside, it isn't necessarily replaced without ANOTHER sleep study.

 

[Momoffourboys]

Very true for the non-compliant. I believe it was said it sat on his night stand or next to his bed? He's compliant or it would be in the trash or in the back of the closet. Once you're compliant, it's one of your best friends.

So he was clearly compliant.
Do you not think One would consider it a medical condition? Not Important enough to mention in case of a Missing person?

 

[animlzrule]

So he was clearly compliant.
Do you not think One would consider it a medical condition? Not Important enough to mention in case of a Missing person?

I don't think there's any way to know. My BIL's is on his bedside table, but according to my sister, it's never used. I don't know where my dad's machine is, I suspect it went back to the Medical Device Co. He would not mention sleep apnea as a medical condition that he has. My mother, however, as she suffers the consequences of his window shaking snoring and constantly interrupted sleep, would most likely pipe up and "remind" him that he has sleep apnea. It probably wouldn't be on my radar in the same way that diabetes would, for example. You can choose not to treat apnea and there will be eventual consequences, but is likely not to be considered by the afflicted to be "life threatening", as inaccurate as that may be. Unless use of the device, as CatFancier points out, has had life altering benefits. I just don't think one can make much of the fact that there was a CPAP next to his bed.....

 

[Philigumbo]

So he was clearly compliant.
Do you not think One would consider it a medical condition? Not Important enough to mention in case of a Missing person?

Depends on the severity. If Cat disappeared, I'd report the OSA and CPAP. If my friend who just wasn't feeling rested at night disappeared, probably wouldn't be the first thing on my mind. Some people SNORE so badly that their spouses are insistent on a CPAP (physician can order it) or sleep in another room. If caused by the upper airway relaxing, there is even a surgery for an implant to keep it elevated, as well as having the uvula (hangy down thing) removed surgically.

A normal respiratory rate is about 12 per minute. When you get down to 3 or 4 per minute, as Cat describes in her case, that's pretty much respiratory failure while she sleeps. Would report it in a flash. Someone else can keep their rate up but have long pauses and gasping, interrupting everyone's sleep, but not drop their oxygen saturation level.

 

[Spiritecho]

Roughly one week after Robert Mayer disappeared, one of his neighbors discovered the missing man's car had been captured by his security camera on the afternoon of his disappearance. The video does not show the inside of the vehicle, but it does show the car pulling into the Mayer's driveway at about 2:40 p.m. The vehicle leaves approximately 10 minutes later. Mayer’s wife is captured arriving in her vehicle at about 3 p.m.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/12/robert-mayer-missing_n_3915824.html#slide=2906132

Does not show the inside, shows vehicle coming in, does it NOT show who got out? Further...Mayer's wife is captured arriving in her vehicle..how do they KNOW it was Mayer's wife in her vehicle?

 

[Spiritecho]

A Suffolk County Police Department spokesman told the Long Island Press that authorities have no indication of foul play in Robert Mayer's disappearance. Until they have "concrete evidence" suggesting otherwise, they will continue to treat it as a missing person case, the Press reported.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/12/robert-mayer-missing_n_3915824.html#slide=2906132

Meaning? they have evidence suggesting otherwise but not concrete?

 

[Born2succeed]

I apologize if I came across harsh. IMO some people have a tendency to blow off things they dont understand medically before doing any research or only the cursory amount. I tend to be passionate about being informed as I have seen too many people lose their life or become even worse off because they do not follow dr advice or their significant others do not support and encourage compliance because they have not thought it important enough to follow through and research it. :facepalm: :twocents:

 

[Momoffourboys]

I know for my BIL and sister the sleep apnea is a huge issue.
It took my BIL years, a heart condition and my sister moving to another room...to
Finally go to a sleep clinic for a study.
My sister considers this a medical condition.

 

[Philigumbo]

Overall, to me, the early reporting, or not early reporting, I should say, of RM's OSA by IM, does not raise a suspicion to me. We don't know the severity of his OSA, if he was compliant in the use of the CPAP, or if the use of it was just a normal part of his nightly routine, so it was overlooked in initial reporting by IM. MOO.