abbreviations

[luckyladyky]

I have been on my cpap machine for about three months now and after reading many posts, I realize that I have not been too well informed about it. The young lady who fitted me did not mention other possible machines and I now have a Remstar Auto- A flex machine with the Resmed Swift FX nasal pillows. What does it do? What does DME mean, and ERR, titration, and how do I read what is on the little card I am supposed to take to the Dr. in 3 months? I am not too pleased with the company that is providing the machine as they have goofed my order for nasal pillows three times now, sent the wrong ones twice and failed to order the correct ones until I questioned the long wait for them. I think I am doing quite well on the machine and have not had problems with the pillows but I sure would like to know just what this thing can do or should do. I hesitate to ask the young lady at the store as she is hard to reach and I wonder about her proficiency. The store is conveniently located for me and really do not want to change if they can be more correct on my orders. Thanks.

[Emilia]

Hi luckyladyky and welcome to the forum. This first thing you want to do is register on the forum and then go to the upper left and click on User Control Panel where you can access your profile to fill in your information and the equipment you are using (in text format, please). Once you are registered with that info, the forum members will be able to see your machine and mask types on every post you write. Being a member also allows other members to send private messages (PM) to you.

As a newbie (like me), you can help yourself the most by reading, reading, and reading some more on this forum. Begin by going to the yellow lightbulb at the top and click on the wiki to learn a lot! In the blue box on the right above, you will see a link for CPAP Definitions...here you can learn all the terms and acronyms.

Those members who have the REMSTAR Auto w/flex can better offer you advice on that machine's settings and the data card. Someone will be along soon to help you!

Best of luck.... and keep us posted on your progress. Join in the discussion here....you will learn tons from the family of cpapers on this forum.

[Bearcat42]

Welcome to the forum Luckyladyky. I can understand that you feel a bit overwhelmed with all of the abbreviations but Emilia is right in that you should register and fill out your equipment in your profile so members here can better answer any questions you might have in the future.
Please visit the Wiki, the yellow lightbulb at the top of the screen. There is alot of information there and it is growing all the time. You can also perform searches of forum topics previously posted that may relate to a question that you have. But please feel free to ask here as well and remember that we all started where you are and it takes time to learn about Cpap therapy. Good luck.

[GumbyCT]

If its not in the wiki look here -
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=53463&p=495813&hili ... ms#p495813

[Bearcat42]

If its not in the wiki look here -
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=53463&p=495813&hili ... ms#p495813

Good call Gumby. I could have sworn there was a sectionf for that in the Wiki but there isnt. I guess there needs to be one done.

[DreamOn]

Welcome to the forum, luckyladyky! Here are some "CPAP Definitions": wiki/index.php/Category:CPAP_Definitions. The acronyms that you specifically mentioned are not listed there, but here are those definitions:

DME = Durable Medical Equipment. We often use DME here to mean "durable medical equipment provider."

Titration - The sleep study where they determine your optimal CPAP pressure.

ERR - I have no idea what that may be. Perhaps you meant EPR? If so, that is ResMed's form of Exhalation Pressure Relief. There are three settings: 1, 2 or 3. These settings reduce the pressure upon exhalation by that many cm H20, making it easier to breathe out against the pressure. For example, if your set machine pressure is 10 and you have EPR set to 3, you will inhale at 10 and exhale at 7 (10 minus 3).

You said that you have a "Remstar Auto A Flex" machine. There are several Remstar machines, but the newest Phillips Respironics Auto is called the "PR System One REMstar Auto A-Flex." I assume that's the one you have, rather than one of the older Remstar models. If that's the machine you have, then the EncoreViewer 2.0 software can be purchased here: https://www.cpap.com/productpage/respir ... chine.html. You'll need a card reader to transfer the data from the machine to your computer. I believe that the SD card readers built into many newer computers can read the data card, but you'll need to confirm that with someone more familiar with the Respironics machines than myself. There is also a "bundle" available at cpap.com that includes both card reader and the software. In the first two posts on this thread are examples of the EncoreViewer 2.0 software reports, so you can see what kind of data is available with that: viewtopic.php?f=1&t=54064

You can also read 7- and 30-day average AHI (apnea-hypopnea index) results and system leak rate (therapy air lost through mask seal leaks and/or mouth breathing) on the System One's LCD screen. Your DME supplier isn't going to show you how to do that. You can learn how to do that from forum members familiar with your machine. The software is really much more helpful than the information available on the Respironics machines' LCD screen, though, because you can see results visually, on a nightly basis, rather than getting only the weekly or monthly averages available on the machine.

I hope that information helps to answer your questions. Many of us find that we don't get the help we need from our doctors and DMEs, so we come here to learn more about sleep apnea and our therapy. I suggest that you browse through the CPAP Wiki (top of the screen) to learn more. And it can be very helpful to search past forum posts also. We're glad you found us!