which machine for mostly hyponeas

[seagull]

Hello, I have one month with this insurance rented remstar auto with cflex. I have had it for one week, and had to sleep without it last night so I could actually sleep. I will need to buy one out of pocket soon. My sleep study indicated I only had 8 apneas, and 178 hypopneas. RDI of 48.6. It is on auto now. I think the rt will come back out when they get a prescription setting for me, and change it to straight cpap. I hope so, so I can try them both. I want more air at the start than a 5.
My question is this--- Which of the big three autos --respironics, auto spirit, or pb goodknight, would be better for hyponeas. This keyboard won't type question marks.
Thanks

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CPAPopedia Keywords Contained In This Post (Click For Definition): cflex, CPAP, RDI, Prescription, auto

[seagull]

Can someone help me with the best machine for hypopnea decision...

[seagull]

[quote="seagull"]Hello, I have one month with this insurance rented remstar auto with cflex. I have had it for one week, and had to sleep without it last night so I could actually sleep. I will need to buy one out of pocket soon. My sleep study indicated I only had 8 apneas, and 178 hypopneas. RDI of 48.6. It is on auto now. I think the rt will come back out when they get a prescription setting for me, and change it to straight cpap. I hope so, so I can try them both. I want more air at the start than a 5.
My question is this--- Which of the big three autos --respironics, auto spirit, or pb goodknight, would be better for hyponeas. This keyboard won't type question marks.
Thanks

[WAFlowers]

Patience Grasshopper. Give people a chance to respond.

Try getting your rt to bump the lower end of the range. In auto (as I understand it) the machine has a lower and upper range. Maybe they left it at 4 and 20 which, I've read here, doesn't work as well as a tighter range around the max pressure established during a titration.

But what do I know? I'm still waiting for my prescription!

[loonlvr]

WAflowers is probably right about a tighter range. I have had my auto since feb. and finally found that 12-14 is producing the best results. I can t count the number of ranges I have tried. This has been for the last 10 days or so. But I will be happy with an AHI from 5-10, with and occasional 3-4.But I have way more apneas than hypopneas.

[seagull]

[quote="WAFlowers"]Patience Grasshopper. Give people a chance to respond.

Try getting your rt to bump the lower end of the range. In auto (as I understand it) the machine has a lower and upper range. Maybe they left it at 4 and 20 which, I've read here, doesn't work as well as a tighter range around the max pressure established during a titration.

I am waiting on my prescription too. That is why they have it set from 5-20. I slept with the comfort gel mask used from my sleep study instead of the swift last night. I felt I got a lot more air at 5 with nasal mask than with the pillows. It is easier to lay on side with the mask than with the swift. I did sleep better with the extra circulation.

[WAFlowers]

Wow! You've got a machine even though you're still waiting on something from the doc? I wish!

[Guest]

At a pressure of 5 I feel like I'm suffocating from lack of air. I am not comfortable unless the low end is at a minimum of 8, so I can totally understand you

....want more air at the start than a 5.

Call your RT immediately and demand they raise the minimum so you can start to get some benefit from the machine. It's a crime to have such a wonderful machine and be unable to sleep with it because they have not set the low end of your pressure range to one that is comfortable enough for you to use. If you're not using it, it's worthless.

I don't understand what you mean when you say you're waiting until

...the rt will come back out when they get a prescription setting for me, and change it to straight cpap.

You've already had your sleep study, you already have a machine (albeit as a 1 month rental), and they didn't tell you what pressure you were titrated to in the study?

Do you have a copy of your sleep study? They should have given you one. You say you used a comfort gel mask during your sleep study, so they obviously titrated a pressure for you. This is an odd order of events.

Demand to know your titrated pressure. It is your right to know. Demand they set your REMstar Auto to a range around that number so you can immediately start to benefit from using the auto. Get the software and card reader so you can start to evaluate your treatment. My titrated pressure from my sleep study was 12. I initially set my pressure range on my REMstar Auto with C-flex to 6-16. I couldn't stand 6... not enough air. I evaluated the data from the software over the course of a few weeks and learned that I spend all of my night at 9 or 10. I changed my range to 8-12. It has never reached 11, but I give it that extra room just in case. My AHI is 0.4 and I am thrilled. I evaluate my data every day to ensure I'm getting the best treatment.

Your RT needs to get on the stick and help you reap the benefits of this therapy, but they can't help you if you don't tell them what you need. You are paying for their service and you should demand to receive it.

[rested gal]

As is the case with Guest, 5 would be too low for me to be comfortable breathing, too.

You've already had your sleep study, you already have a machine (albeit as a 1 month rental), and they didn't tell you what pressure you were titrated to in the study?

Maybe they weren't able to determine for sure what pressure Seagull needed during the titration part of the study. The doctor may want more data via one month on autopap at home before deciding what single pressure to prescribe.

Seagull, I don't know which of the "big three" autos would be better for treating hypopneas. It's very possible that if a number of people who have more hypopneas than obstructive apneas tried all three, some would be treated better by one brand, some by another. Might be hard to know in advance which would suit each "hypopnea heavy" person better. Might also be that a single pressure would do better. Perhaps someone else has a better idea than just trying all three. It's unlikely the doctor would go along with that, but wouldn't hurt to ask.

[seagull]

As is the case with Guest, 5 would be too low for me to be comfortable breathing, too.

You've already had your sleep study, you already have a machine (albeit as a 1 month rental), and they didn't tell you what pressure you were titrated to in the study?

Maybe they weren't able to determine for sure what pressure Seagull needed during the titration part of the study. The doctor may want more data via one month on autopap at home before deciding what single pressure to prescribe.

Seagull, I don't know which of the "big three" autos would be better for treating hypopneas. It's very possible that if a number of people who have more hypopneas than obstructive apneas tried all three, some would be treated better by one brand, some by another. Might be hard to know in advance which would suit each "hypopnea heavy" person better. Might also be that a single pressure would do better. Perhaps someone else has a better idea than just trying all three. It's unlikely the doctor would go along with that, but wouldn't hurt to ask.

Yes rested gal--- I am losing my insurance, and wanted a machine asap. I got one 2 days after my study. The sleep study guy said I would probably be set at 11 or 12. They gave me the machine before the results are in. That is why I got an auto. I called and asked them. The rt who brought it out wasn't sure why I got an auto either. Thanks

[ozij]

I don't know which machine is best. I too would recommend raising the lower limit on you test machine.

Here's Derek - computer savvy and hypopnea exclusive almost - leading a discussion of the Remstar handling hypopneas . Derek, by the way, eventually concluded that straight pap was better for him. But he needed an APAP to find that out.

O.