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Sleep Apnea-new FAA Guidelines - be prepared!

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Sleep Apnea-new FAA Guidelines - be prepared!

Old 03-16-2015, 06:47 AM
  #51  
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That chart is cool. I'm 6'5", and apparently 156 is in the "normal" range. A good fart would knock me off my feet at 156
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Old 03-16-2015, 06:58 AM
  #52  
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Originally Posted by coopervane View Post
Here's my issue with this.

Has ther ever been a documented case where OSA has been linked to a incident.

Fatigue? Yes I'm sure, but was OSA identified as the culprit? If no, then why focus on this? Aren't there more important health issues to tackle?

I could see a focus on cardiac issues or focus on high blood pressure, but it seems someone at the FAA had a pilot with OSA boning his wife.
Wasn't there a Mesa Go! flight that went well beyond the islands of Hawaii before the pilots finally turned back?
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Old 03-16-2015, 07:56 AM
  #53  
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Originally Posted by ShyGuy View Post
Wasn't there a Mesa Go! flight that went well beyond the islands of Hawaii before the pilots finally turned back?
Yeah.....that had nothing to do with the horrible scheduling rules Mesa had.
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Old 03-16-2015, 08:01 AM
  #54  
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Originally Posted by ShyGuy View Post
Wasn't there a Mesa Go! flight that went well beyond the islands of Hawaii before the pilots finally turned back?
And again: Did this have anything to do with a sleep disorder?

Having once been at Mesa, I'd venture a guess that the fatigue displayed in this incident had more to do with a crappy hotel and/or a fatigue-inducing schedule.

My current employer is showing zero concern with sleep patterns and circadian rhythm. We commonly have pairings with an 0700 show, one 2:30 leg, 12 hours of daytime rest followed by a 4 hour red eye followed by another 12 hours rest with a late afternoon show and 2 legs ending at 2200. 10 hours 1 minute on the ground followed by an early morning show on Day 4 with 3 legs and 7:30 flight time.

It's all legal per Part 117. Early morning, sleep in the day, red eye, sleep in the morning, late evening flying, short night, early morning, long Day 4.

Throw in a few nights in the lowest-cost-bidder hotels just to add to the fun. And if I'm fatigued on Day 4 it's obvious that I must have a sleep disorder.

It's easier and less expensive for airline management in concert with a willing FAA to blame the pilots than it is to actually fix the real problem.
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Old 03-16-2015, 08:06 AM
  #55  
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I just got tested and have moderate sleep apnea. I am 6' and under 180 but my dad and brother were diagnosed years ago so I always suspected I had issues. I've never had problems staying awake in the cockpit but have known most my life that I never slept well. My wife would hold my nose to stop my snoring.

Been on the CPAP 10 days now and already notice a remarkable increase in my overall daily energy.

ALPA aero med is working my issue and has sent me all the info I need to get cleared. Will let you know how long it takes me to get back on the flying schedule.

Believe this will be one the best health decisions I've been faced with for my overall well being.
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Old 03-16-2015, 08:11 AM
  #56  
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Originally Posted by gr8vu View Post
I just got tested and have moderate sleep apnea. I am 6' and under 180 but my dad and brother were diagnosed years ago so I always suspected I had issues. I've never had problems staying awake in the cockpit but have known most my life that I never slept well. My wife would hold my nose to stop my snoring.

Been on the CPAP 10 days now and already notice a remarkable increase in my overall daily energy.

ALPA aero med is working my issue and has sent me all the info I need to get cleared. Will let you know how long it takes me to get back on the flying schedule.

Believe this will be one the best health decisions I've been faced with for my overall well being.

Well this thread is more about bashing fatties. You seem fit at your height and weight. Thanks for ruining our fun. All kidding aside, I hope your condition improves.
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Old 03-16-2015, 08:26 AM
  #57  
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Don't anyone fall for the OP's app or the information provided on his website link. They are trolling for pilot dollars based on fear and misinformation while providing just enough truth to worry some.

The website and his posts imply to find out your OSA status before you visit your AME and you'll fall into spec sheet A territory and thus, not have any time off. Wrong. The moment you are notified of having OSA via a sleep assessment, you're grounded, until you follow the FAA procedures. Thus, you can't visit them first to determine OSA status, get it "fixed", and then on your medical tell the FAA you're good to go! If anyone did this, they'd be in SERIOUS hot water as they would have flown after being notified of an FAA disabling condition before receiving FAA approval to return to flying.

Do yourself a favor and read the information in the link I posted in post 2. It is THE same guide the AME has received from the FAA.

This is his website's information:
Decision B- Decide to be evaluated and possibly treated for OSA prior to the AME exam. Spec Sheet A will be issued and in this case as long as the sleep study has been performed prior to presenting to the AME , a medical certificate will be issues with the condition that all appropriate information pertaining to the diagnosis and treatment be provided within 90 days of the AME evaluation. Thus the course of action is predetermined, no risk exists of having lapses in medical certificate validity.

Either way The Fly-in Fly-out program, takes the uncertainty out of the entire process. From start to completion of the SI, you will be handled by experts in the process of SI for pilots with sleep apnea. In most cases no time off work will be required . The process of diagnosis, treatment and documentation of effective compliance is consolidated in a very short time span, making the risk and uncertainty of successful special issuance very low.

The "doc's" Decision B is WRONG, WRONG, WRONG...don't fall into the trap this self-serving poster has provided. Your medical WILL be impacted if you have a sleep study that documents OSA and you don't ground yourself right away. And, would you really trust them providing information for SI (Special Issuance) when their information is rife with errors already?
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Old 03-16-2015, 08:30 AM
  #58  
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I am not a health nut--challenged myself over the years with several marathons and finished a half ironman 2 years ago. But I still try to do weekly cardio and bike rides so my weight is not causing my issue. I could probably solve my apnea with a dental device but the way I read the FAA guidance is that only mild sleep apnea can be treated with this. For now I have to comply with CPAP usage and get my doctor to sign off it.

And concur with prior posts--read the latest literature...all we heard about eggs, butter, animal fats, etc the past few decades has been re-evaluated.
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Old 03-16-2015, 09:04 AM
  #59  
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Originally Posted by forgot to bid View Post
Here's the thing, even if you're 5'5" and 50 lbs away from BMI 35, you're still overweight per the BMI, not per the eyeball though.

But here is the thing, your BMI is not an issue to them, this is about OSA, and the FAA made it clear already that: "once we have appropriately dealt with every airman examinee who has a BMI of 40 or greater, we will gradually expand the testing pool by going to lower BMI measurements until we have identified and assured treatment for every airman with OSA.

The fact they want to test for something, ground you and then not have a decent solution other than the surgical ones is a red flag to me that this is a highly intrusive yet not a well thought out program.

I kind of wish they were just concentrating on BMI and body fat, at least it'd make sense. Then losing weight would be a solution and a good one or a lot of reasons, such as preventing a heart attack in flight? But that's not a problem to the FAA, the focus is OSA.

And to the FAA losing weight is not an acceptable solution to OSA, hence, BMI is not the issue to begin with.

Someone in OKC has their "thing" with OSA and wants to start an expedition on pilots and that keeps me from sleeping soundly at night, I mean I wake up coughing gasping for air because of it
I experience those same symptoms after viewing a horror flick and someone or something is chasing me in my dreams!
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Old 03-16-2015, 09:19 AM
  #60  
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Originally Posted by Learflyer View Post
The girlfriend. She will just gently nudge you to break the snoring. The wife will punch hard.
So the solution to OSA is sleeping alone
Got it
Pay for them to leave
It's always cheaper
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