EncoreViewer? New to community, need advice.

ryro327 · Post by **ryro327** » Mon Mar 14, 2011 2:53 pm

Hi everyone,

I'm new to the Cpap community & just got my machine literally a hour or so ago. I've known about this website for awhile now but only today registered. I've been reading a bunch of threads & came across information about software named EncoreViewer for my RP System One w/ the SD card.

People have mentioned it's a pretty necessary accessory as you can read your own data & change the settings accordingly... that actually sounds fantastic as I'm worried my settings may be off b/c in the sleep clinic the mask they put on me didn't fit right. Initially it seemed fine but when I fell asleep, I opened my mouth (mouth breather), making the mask slide down a bit & causing a lot of air to escape around my nose- not to mention the pain my nose felt when I woke up!!!! I literally had an indentation caused by the damn mask...

They currently have me set up on settings 16/12 CM H20. What does the CM H20 stand for? I have no idea

Anyway, I do currently work but I don't make too much (state worker-hence the low wage but great benefits! I mean this machine & all the bells & whistles was free plus I'm hoping to go to Grad school this Fall (I'm 25 btw). I've found some site's supposedly selling EncoreViewer 2.0 for $99, is that a legit price?? Seems awfully steep for some damn software. I don't think I've ever paid so much for software, even my MS office was $60 for ultimate w/ student discount.
The other problem is I run Windows 7 on a 64bit machine & I've read that 2.0 wouldn't even work on my machine!!! Now I've read some posts about people mentioning versions 2.2 & 2.4 both of which seem to be ok w/ 64bit but I've tried searching EVERYWHERE but can't find where to get it- Download/ buy w/e it may be.

So.... what do I do? Is the software worth the $99? Any advice would be great! Thanks!

Pugsy · Post by **Pugsy** » Mon Mar 14, 2011 3:08 pm

Check your PM Box, if nothing there, let me know. I sent you a note (or I thought I did)

ryro327 · Post by **ryro327** » Mon Mar 14, 2011 3:37 pm

Thanks for the info Pugsy! ;p

What do you guys think about the initial settings they have me on? They seem high to what I see other users on this forum have.

I know that I'll need the data before an accurate assessment can be made but at least the machine they gave me has the rate option. It lowers the initial levels dramatically so you can fall asleep easier which is fantastic as the full on level is a bit much to take on at once. Well... we'll tonight won't we

Pugsy · Post by **Pugsy** » Mon Mar 14, 2011 4:08 pm

Pressures are rather high but that is why you have the Bipap because it has better exhale relief options. You will have considerable company at those pressures and some are even higher.

cpap pressure can be measured with a manometer and water.

wiki/index.php/Manometer

rested gal · Post by **rested gal** » Mon Mar 14, 2011 4:25 pm

Welcome to the forum, ryro!
You have a really nice BiPAP machine.

ryro327 wrote:They currently have me set up on settings 16/12 CM H20. What does the CM H20 stand for?

Pugsy probably told you in her PM to you, but for other new readers:

CM=centimeters H2O=water

cm H20 (sometimes written as cmwp - centimeters water pressure) is the way the air flow coming out of a cpap machine is measured. It's how many centimeters the air flow can push a column of water upward.

Your bilevel machine is set to a pressure that would be able to push water upward 16 centimeters in a column when you inhale (the IPAP pressure setting) and 12 centimeters up when you exhale (the EPAP pressure setting.)

ryro327 wrote:What do you guys think about the initial settings they have me on? They seem high to what I see other users on this forum have.

Well, there are probably many BiPAP users who use IPAP 16 / EPAP 12. And a lot higher. Your 16/12 doesn't sound unusually "high" to me, for using a bilevel machine.

The "12" is the most important pressure you mentioned, imho. The EPAP pressure in a bilevel machine is the one that the sleep study titration found (presumably) to be the amount of pressure it takes to try to prevent apneas. The higher IPAP pressure is to try to eliminate lesser, partial obstructions such as hypopneas, flow limitations, and snores.

EPAP is the really important workhorse of those two pressures. So, if you decide to start tweaking things after you begin doing your own downloads, I'd leave IPAP alone for awhile and do your tweaks to "EPAP." If you see that lowering EPAP causes more "OA's" (Obstructive Apneas) to appear on your data, then lowering EPAP is not the correct thing to do.

The sleep study probably "got it right" when they set your EPAP at 12. Since you can see from the software you're getting what happens if you change EPAP, you'll find out pretty quickly whether EPAP 12 really is what you need most nights.

I would not change both EPAP and IPAP at the same time. If you change both, it might be more confusing to know which helped (or hurt) what.

EPAP is the important one to concentrate on -- especially at first.

I'm not a doctor, or anything in the health care field at all, but anyway... here are my thoughts about EPAP setting on a bilevel machine:

November 2007 - EPAP is for more than just comfort exhaling.
viewtopic.php?p=227068#p227068

December 2007 - my understanding of how a bipap titration is done.
viewtopic.php?p=231786#p231786

May 2008 - discussion with RonS about importance of EPAP setting.
viewtopic.php?p=265020#p265020

September 2007 - discusson with JLFitzfamily about EPAP 4
viewtopic.php?p=211222#p211222

Drowsy Dancer · Post by **Drowsy Dancer** » Mon Mar 14, 2011 4:46 pm

The software available to you will run on a Win 7 machine. It takes a long time to install because of SQL Server. It is well worth the effort to learn a bit about how to interpret the data you can start pulling off your CPAP machine (change the setting so you don't automatically wipe the SD card). Post images for interpretation if you need to. There are some very knowledgeable and helpful forum members here.

DD

ryro327 · Post by **ryro327** » Mon Mar 14, 2011 4:47 pm

That's really interesting & didn't think about that.

It's making a lot more sense.... When I took a full spectrum breath test at the doctor's, most of my results were within range except for MVV & FRC levels were at reduced levels. My MVV was especially low at 73 meaning that I may have issues with the mechanical aspects of breathing air in & out- the typical report stated I might have nueromuscular disease but that's quite a broad statement & the doctor said not to worry about it too much.

Hmm.... I hope this machine helps. I can't wait to have my life back in a sense- not be so freaking tired all the time & lose weight. Not to mention regulate my heart-rate back to normal levels. I've had abnormal tachycardia for almost a year now & the doctors couldn't figure out why. My first sleep test showed my heart rate never dropping lower than 92bpm. The 2nd test with the machine my heart rate went down to 74bpm, quite a significant difference. Suffering from this sleep apnea may have conditioned my heart to beat harder overall which can lead to many problems down the line. Just getting rid of that 1 issue would all be worth it, although I'd also think it'll help w/ losing weight as I haven't been able to. I've tried dieting & light exercise (doctors told me not to do strenuous due to HR) but it hasn't helped.

Here's hoping for the best

EncoreViewer? New to community, need advice.

EncoreViewer? New to community, need advice.

Re: EncoreViewer? New to community, need advice.

Re: EncoreViewer? New to community, need advice.

Re: EncoreViewer? New to community, need advice.

Re: EncoreViewer? New to community, need advice.

Re: EncoreViewer? New to community, need advice.

Re: EncoreViewer? New to community, need advice.