APAP

[snostorm]

As in auto cpap? Wouldn't this be a no brainer for everyone who needs CPAP therapy? I mean it would stand to reason that peoples pressures would vary depending on weight fluctuation...and numerous other factors. Should auto PAP be the standard?It seems to me it should and I want one but the machine I have provided by my insurance company isnt auto.

[Pugsy]

Wanna bet it was the DME who told you that your insurance wouldn't pay for APAP?
Normally insurance companies pay for cpap by HCPCS billing code...and that would be E0601 for the cheapest brick up to and including the APAP machines....Insurance companies don't care about brands or models...just that HCPCS code.
Did you ask your insurance company directly? Or did you take the DME who sold you the machine word?
Now in some rare situations with HMO type of insurance..maybe they dictate brand and model but 99.9 % of the insurance companies pay by HCPCS billing code.

[LSAT]

I agree with Pugsy. The insurance company pays one price for a CPAP/APAP. It's up to the DME as to what machine they give you. I would check with your insurance to see if you can return the CPAP to the DME and look for another DME that will supply an APAP. Have your doctor write a prescription that specifies APAP. Threatening your current DME may make them decide to exchange the unit. What machine did the DME give you? It may very well be a good machine, but not an APAP.

[snostorm]

It is a resmed VPAP S. I ave a little bit of a negative experience with the whole process. Based on my titration study they originally had me on some insane setting like 20 and bipap. It was horrendous I couldn't adapt it was breathing for me it was crazy. I didnt comply with my CPAP therapy. 4 years later i busted out the machine and tried it again but it was so high it was blowing up my stomach with air. I researched on the internet on how to change the settings and changed it to 14. initially my AHI's where like 1.3 to 1.5. But now that I have adapted I hit REM and my AHI's are in the mid 3's. I dont want to increase my pressure for fear of Aphasia. I went back to the sleep doctor and he said the original setting they had me at was ridiculous. SO basically I didn't comply for 4 years because they where incompetent.

I sleep pretty well now but would like my AHI's a little lower and I think I want an APAP. My DME told me they are prescribed for people with insurance that cant get a sleep study.

[LSAT]

It is a resmed VPAP S. I ave a little bit of a negative experience with the whole process. Based on my titration study they originally had me on some insane setting like 20 and bipap. It was horrendous I couldn't adapt it was breathing for me it was crazy. I didnt comply with my CPAP therapy. 4 years later i busted out the machine and tried it again but it was so high it was blowing up my stomach with air. I researched on the internet on how to change the settings and changed it to 14. initially my AHI's where like 1.3 to 1.5. But now that I have adapted I hit REM and my AHI's are in the mid 3's. I dont want to increase my pressure for fear of Aphasia. I went back to the sleep doctor and he said the original setting they had me at was ridiculous. SO basically I didn't comply for 4 years because they where incompetent.

I sleep pretty well now but would like my AHI's a little lower and I think I want an APAP. My DME told me they are prescribed for people with insurance that cant get a sleep study.

You should have given this information in your original post...The VPAP you received 4 years ago is a very expensive machine.

[Pugsy]

My DME told me they are prescribed for people with insurance that cant get a sleep study.

Well.. half true but very misleading. They can be prescribed for people without insurance but that's not the only reason.
You got a VPAP (bilevel pressure machine because of your higher pressure needs...even if the settings were wrong...that's why you got the VPAP.

We deal with what we have...
The VPAP S...does it look like this?

https://www.cpap.com/productpage/S9-VPA ... chine.html

or this
https://www.cpap.com/productpage/resmed ... chine.html

Also what are your current setting(s)? Are you using cpap mode or bilevel mode...you mention 14 but in bilevel mode there should another setting.
You actually have one of the best machines for someone having aerophagia issues...sometimes better than APAP.

[kteague]

If you have high pressures you do not want to go from your current machine, a bi-level machine, to an apap. That would be going backwards, as people on cpaps and apaps who have higher pressures and are having trouble are bumped up to a bi-level machine such as yours.( Same machine I have BTW.) Now, there are bi-level machines that are auto titrating, but if you go ask for a new machine, be very sure of your exact terminology so you don't go backwards. Auto machines give a bit more data and are more comfortable for some whose needs fluctuate during the night and they don't want to stay at a high pressure, I personally don't feel the need for one, though I fought for one when my cpap treatment wasn't working well and used one for a couple years. My soapbox point is a machine MUST have data. If I can see my data I can adjust my settings accordingly. Over the course of a night my needs don't fluctuate enough for it to be an issue. Everybody's different.