Can I use an Autoset machine?

Hello

I am new to the forum. I am looking for some advice on the recent Autoset machines that are on the market. I live in the UK, here we get our CPAP equipment through the NHS so we simply take what device we are given. In seems that in the US and some other places that people are a lot more clued up on what the different devices do because I guess they have to pay for the machine themselves or via medical insurance etc.

The upshot is that I, like most people in the UK, don't know a lot about the different machines. I have tried to look for answers to my question online but could not really find the answer. My question here today is can I use an Autoset device? I currently use a CPAP device that is setup and maintained by the NHS. Most of the settings on the device are 'greyed' out so that they can't be selected. I believe the pressure is set to a constant 12 1/2 Bar. So I like the idea of an Autoset machine that only provides as much pressure as your body needs. But does that fly at odds with my condition? After all CPAP stands for continuous positive air pressure. So can someone like me use an Autoset machine or are they for people who don't need a continuous pressure.

Kind regards

The difference between straight Cpap machines and autos is that while you can still use plain Cpap (one set pressure) with autos, you also have the option of setting one low and one high pressure and changing them at will to find your best range, i.e. 8-12, where your pressure naturally goes and wants to stay at for 90-95% of the night (determined by software such as SleepyHead, free to DL from the forum), and apart from the convenience of being able to self titrate, you also can quickly re-adjust things as per your stats when you feel it necessary, rather than waiting weeks to see a doctor or technician to get it done (by which time things may be very different in any case). If you get an auto, we can help you reset your pressures if and when you'd like to... it's easy, whatever they tell you!

And the two most widely popular ones are the Resmed autoset S9, pref. model #506, not the 'Escape' which gives no meaningful data, and the Philips Respironics PR S1 (not sure of models), which are fairly equal in quality and usefulness - diffs are minor. But there are even newer ones out, the AirSense line, and you can look at all of these and others (see mine below this note) on Cpap.com because it gives lots of info on all, including reviews, etc.

APAP machines are CPAP machines that have the ability to offer a mode of operation where that continuous pressure can auto adjust as needed. So it's still continuous positive pressure but the pressure isn't fixed.
So it does do the continuous pressure but it has the ability to deliver that pressure in cm as it sees fit within the parameters that a person selects.
They come in handy when a person needs a higher pressure for only part of the night and not all of the night. Sometimes people need more pressure when they are sleeping on their backs or when they are in REM stage sleep.
When I was using an APAP machine I used 10 cm minimum pressure and it did a very good job for most of the night but my OSA is worse in REM sleep so sometimes I would need a lot more pressure in REM stage sleep. Sometimes as much as 18 cm. Now I would rather use 10 cm most of the night and let the machine go to 18 for maybe an hour or so than use 18 cm all night.

Some people don't do well with pressures that roam around because for some people that changing pressure disturbs their sleep.
Others like me sleep right through the changing pressures and never know they happen until they see a report showing the big changes.