When i was diagnosed with sleep apnea, the doctor said my blood oxygen level was normal. do i actually need a cpap?

YES: Hypoxia (low oxygen) does not always occur in apnea. It may indicate that your apnea is not severe. But sleep apnea causes other physiologic strains that can produce long-term problems like strain on the heart. Untreated sleep apnea leads to fragmented sleep - decreasing the quality of sleep and increasing the risk of daytime fatigue. Apnea patients are 4-7 more times likely to be in accidents.

CPAP: Normal oxygen does not mean that your oxygen saturation did not drop. If you have symptoms of sleep apnea like daytime somnolence, problems concentrating or with memory or irritability or if you have high blood pressure, stroke/tia, coronary artery disease, atrial fibrillation, you have to be treated. Also moderate and severe osa have to be treated, even w/o anything of the above.

If you have been: Diagnosed with sleep apnea yes go ahead where the CPAP mask if you have mild and moderate sleep apnea you have and alternative option for your sleep apnea and that is oral sleep apnea base of american sleep medicine.