I don't have my PR S1 760 hooked up right now so I can't comment for sure about above 8 cm...I know it will go to at least 8 cm Pressure support. I am too tired and lazy to get it out of the closet and power it up to see for sure how high it will go.HoseCrusher wrote:The difference between the two machines is the amount of relief offered when you exhale. Auto Cpap can offer up to 3 cm pressure relief. Bi Level can go higher and Pugsy thinks it may be as high as 8 cm pressure relief.
I know the Adapt will go to 15 PS with minimum of 3 when wide open but that's the high end bilevel and not the "plain" bilevel.
Everyone:
Pressure support is nothing more than a fancy term for the difference between inhale and exhale.
When you use your S9 Autoset or Elite with EPR set to 3...that's pretty much pressure support at 3 cm. The difference between inhale and exhale is going to be 3 cm.
You don't see the setting separately like we can adjust with the bilevel machines but it's there.
When you set your machine to say 12 cm with EPR of 3...that means you get 12 on inhale and 9 on exhale....that's pressure support of 3.
If you use apap mode and the pressure goes up from that 12 to 15 ...that means on exhale you are using 12 exhale...always a difference of 3 if you are using 3 EPR.
So those of you using the Elite or AutoSet in cpap or apap mode and using EPR...it's working like a bilevel machine and the main difference is you are limited to 3 cm difference....and with the VPAPs you could have a larger difference and sometimes that bigger difference comes in very handy.
This is why when people ask me what brand machine should they get I ask if they know their pressure needs...and if they tell me that the pressures are in the teens (especially upper teens) I will suggest the ResMed because that 3 cm EPR could make a big difference in comfort and successful therapy. It just feels better than 2 cm difference and is more dramatic than the Respironics Flex relief. I have used all of them and 3 cm feels better than 2 cm difference....and 4 cm feels a lot better than 3 cm and that's how come I ended up on bilevel...pure comfort.