Originally Posted by centexwoody
I've considered having surgery to straighten septum, tonsillectomy, etc. because my dependency on the CPAP means that I feel tied to an electrical outlet. How'm I gonna tour & camp with a CPAP? Yes, yes, I know it can be done but being apnic, relying on a CPAP certainly cuts into the long wilderness backpacking trips...
Unfortunately, most likely even after the surgery you're going to have some of the resistance/obstruction in your upper airway... I see it all the time in pts who go into any corrective surgery thinking they'll be cured of OSA or UARS...
Think of it this way... Your insurance company already invested over $1k in you for the CPAP (if you've gone through a couple masks, filters and hoses) and if you say ''no doc I cant handle it anymore'' most likely your insurance will cover your surgery. Then they'll say... we just paid an ENT to bore out your upper airway, you damn well better be cured.... so back to the sleep lab. IF there's any trace of obstruction in your upper airway they're going to script you a CPAP again anyways. They look at it as they've spent a lot of money on you to keep you from having the long term effects of untreated apnea, so you better be using your prescribed treatment.