Deamstation or Airsense 10 auto

[ybscc]

Hi,

I have been recently diagnosed with OSA, and was wondering which machine is better, the DreamStation or the Airsense 10. I have been searching the internet for comparisons and only found 1 from CPAP.com.

Please help a newbie

[Jas_williams]

Generally we recommend the Resmed Autoset 10 for her as the best machine to get to treat Obstructive Apnoea, if if you are a for HIM The normal Autoset comes a close second, followed by the Philips Dreamstation

[CapnLoki]

Generally we recommend the Resmed Autoset 10 for her as the best machine to get to treat Obstructive Apnoea, if if you are a for HIM The normal Autoset comes a close second, followed by the Philips Dreamstation

Just curious - why are the ResMed AirSense considered superior to the Dreamstation? The several Philips machines I've had have kept my AHI under 0.4 for years, which is as close to perfect as I might expect.

The Dreamstation is better for travel, weighing less and being smaller. With the removable humidifier it can be much smaller if you're travelling to humid regions. For battery applications, camping and backup, the new Resmed is a disaster, using 70% more power than its predecessor. And it needs an expensive power adapter.

On top of all this, the ResMed is hundreds of dollars more expensive than the Dreamstation. You can almost get two Dreamstations for the cost of one AirSense plus a DC cord!

So what feature does the AirSense have that makes it worth all the pain?

[Pugsy]

Just curious - why are the ResMed AirSense considered superior to the Dreamstation? The several Philips machines I've had have kept my AHI under 0.4 for years, which is as close to perfect as I might expect.

The Dreamstation is better for travel, weighing less and being smaller. With the removable humidifier it can be much smaller if you're travelling to humid regions. For battery applications, camping and backup, the new Resmed is a disaster, using 70% more power than its predecessor. And it needs an expensive power adapter.

On top of all this, the ResMed is hundreds of dollars more expensive than the Dreamstation. You can almost get two Dreamstations for the cost of one AirSense plus a DC cord!

So what feature does the AirSense have that makes it worth all the pain?

I will take a stab at explaining why I prefer ResMed...and I have had a chance to use both brands...so I can speak from experience.
A lot of people don't have that luxury.

1...cost...if insurance is buying it...there is no difference in cost or co pay to the patient. Insurance pays by that old HCPCS code and not brand or even model name. Co pays or deductibles are the same to matter what.
Now self pay or high deductible...cost definitely could be a significant factor.
My insurance has never bought me a machine though...

2..all the good stuff about the Respironics being not so power hungry and will run off batteries directly and without the humidifier box which can make it smaller....for me pretty much irrelevant. My nose won't dare go without added moisture or I am miserable...and I never go camping where I would benefit from easy battery use...and at home here if power goes out...I have a whole house portable generator I can fire up. So all the stuff that are pluses in the power department and important to you and probably others...not so important to me and probably others like me.

3..I prefer the ResMed's auto adjusting algorithm over the Respironics...the more responsiveness of the ResMed let's me use about 4 cm less minimum pressure than the Respironics to get about the same results. It's not a deal maker or breaker all by itself but hey....7 cm is so much easier to deal with than 11 cm...and while I can deal with a minimum of 11 if I had to...why would I want to if I don't have to.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzCCgNLya_g
Above video supports my personal observation about the 2 different auto adjusting algorithms.
Slower will work just fine...but usually means more minimum pressure will be needed and while not a deal breaker all by itself there are some people who have trouble with just "a little more pressure" because of aerophagia or whatever.
You can still get excellent therapy with Respironics...no one is saying you can't but it will most likely involve slight adjustments higher in pressure.

4...ResMed's exhale relief is superior to Respironics in that a person can get up to a full 3 cm drop during exhale no matter how forcefully they breathe. With Respironics the most you can get is up to 2 cm reduction (even at max setting of 3) and you get that only if you are a forceful breather. Shallow breather won't even get that 2 cm.
Probably not a big deal when the pressures are in the single digits but could be really important and critical at the pressure in the teens.
Not to mention aerophagia issues that might crop up.

5..for me the ResMeds have been quieter...not that any of my Respironics machines have been noisy but the ResMed is essentially silent both on inhale and exhale for me. Respironics I can always seem to hear my inhale...not horrible and I learned to tune it out but it's nice not to have to make a point to tune out a noise. So both motor noise and breathing noises are lessened. For some people this might be critical if they are really light sleepers.

The ResMed AirSense AutoSet for Her has that special auto adjusting algorithm in addition to the regular auto algorithm....always better to have something available and not need it than need it and not have it. I use that algorithm...nothing about it would limit it to women...it could also benefit men.

When someone asks me which machine and I don't know anything about what their therapy is going to entail...don't know pressures and don't know if exhale relief will be important and don't know if noise will be a problem...I advise a machine that I think would cover all bases more easily and completely with less chance of dissatisfaction. Again I figure it's better to have something and not need it than need it and not have it.
Now once I know more about the person and pressures and lifestyle...then I can dial in the recommendation a little more and be specific more.

If this is all I get in the way of information....I pretty much am going on nothing in terms of wants or needs so I suggest the ResMed from the therapy standpoint. Now from lifestyle if the OP had mention avid outdoors man and camping enthusiast...I would most probably go ahead with the Respironics suggestion but explain the minor differences between the brands. If this person needs 15 cm pressure most of the time...ResMed is going to be a whole lot easier for a newbie to master.

I have been recently diagnosed with OSA, and was wondering which machine is better, the DreamStation or the Airsense 10. I have been searching the internet for comparisons and only found 1 from CPAP.com.

I am not anti Respironics...I still have a System One 760 as a back up machine and I will often use it if I travel but my traveling is limited to a trip to Vegas to see the daughter and grandson...no camping or stuff like that. I just don't do that stuff any more.

I really hadn't offered an opinion in this thread because I was wanting to hear back from the OP with maybe a little more about personal specifics...insurance or self pay...pressures that will be used if known...lifestyle (camping or such) and then I could fine tune and explain my thoughts in more detail.

But when I don't know any details...the ResMed AutoSet is going to be my recommendation at least from a therapy standpoint because I think it has less chance causing potential problems that seem to bug new users.
And I happen to think that new to cpap and being male...the for Her model should be an option at least to have available...that other algorithm might come in handy and when fighting the treatment war....I want as much ammo available as possible. I might not need it but I want it there if at all possible.

[palerider]

In addition to what pugsy said:

Resmeds auto on/off works MUCH better than respironics
ResMed ships a better bag with the unit.
Having taken both brands of machines apart, I can say that the Resmeds are better built, and better engineered.
Resmeds provide more detailed data.
The newest ones take up less space on the side table.

[CapnLoki]

I will take a stab at explaining why I prefer ResMed...and I have had a chance to use both brands...so I can speak from experience.
A lot of people don't have that luxury. ...

On the therapy issues I must bow to your superior wisdom. However, I would point out that just like I have a bias towards battery issues because I advise folks on that - you may have a similar bias about complex therapy problems. I've always had the feeling that the majority of people use moderate pressure and assuming they get a bit of help in the beginning they adapt fairly quickly. I wonder what percentage of folks use the advanced features you describe?

As for the cost, many people pay a lot with copays and deductibles, enough so that buying a DreamStation outright may be cost effective. And folks who travel a lot, or have vacation homes, or just want a backup would certainly appreciate the low cost of a DreamStation. While I admit most people aren't interested in battery usage, but most people travel - with the small size I often just stuff the Dreamstation in my carry on.

...
The newest ones take up less space on the side table.

Really? A few square inches ... offset by the fact that the Resmed has the hose coming out the back and the humidifier needs room on the side to pull out? Not to mention the DreamStation has a flat top that you can put things on (yes I do this almost every day). I'd say this ones a tossup.

[Pugsy]

On the therapy issues I must bow to your superior wisdom. However, I would point out that just like I have a bias towards battery issues because I advise folks on that - you may have a similar bias about complex therapy problems. I've always had the feeling that the majority of people use moderate pressure and assuming they get a bit of help in the beginning they adapt fairly quickly. I wonder what percentage of folks use the advanced features you describe?

Those "advanced" features are available on both machines except for the special auto mode for Her...they just work a little differently.
Ramp, exhale relief...both machines have it and both work well for the most part. Only thing is there are times when maybe one might work a little better than the other and since my crystal ball is broken and I have no way to know who those people might be needing something the other machine doesn't go about doing in the same way.

My job is optimizing cpap therapy....how to get the best results out of what we have given peoples own unique set of issues. I have enough of a struggle doing all that without adding in the travel stuff and battery stuff...and if you notice I rarely contribute to posts about that sort of thing and when I do it is the most basic information.
When people ask me how to get the "best" therapy....I tell them what I think is the best way to go about it. Yeah, my bias will probably show but everyone has their own bias here. We are all drawing our advice based on our personal experience. It's normal and to be expected. We do it pretty much on everything...masks, bed pillows, ramp or no ramp, exhale relief or no exhale relief, etc. It's normal.
Tis no different really than your telling people what you think is the best way to go about battery stuff. You tell them their options and what to expect and let them decide what is going to work best for them. The more details they can give you about what they are wanting or needing to do...the better you can help them. Without any details they get the generic advice as to what you think works best for most people. Same thing when I recommend machines.

I started my cpap therapy some 10 years ago with a Respironics M series machine...used it for years and even moved up to the SystemOne APAP...then I got a chance to actually try and use a ResMed S9. Up to that point I didn't know how the 2 machines compared...I knew I was happy with the Respironics but figured why not try the other. See if I could learn something.
Now I know not everyone has the luxury of trying different brands and different models of machines but I got to do it and I get to offer my personal opinion on both since I have used both.
So that's how I got experience with both brands.

If someone tells me that they are on a tight budget and they are self pay or high deductible...I will for sure offer Respironics as an option.

If I have time for everyone ...once I have a little history to go on...I still try to offer both sides..pros and cons so the people can make and educated decision about which machine they think will suit their needs and pocketbook.
But if I don't have anything else to go on other than "which machine is the best"...it's the ResMed IMHO for the majority of people.
Now once I get more details then I might explain why Respironics might suit their needs the best. It all depends on those details that we at this point here don't know.

I do try to offer both sides when I can and when it seems pertinent....and let the consumer decide which option they think will suit their needs the best and suit their pocketbook the best.
We have had many cpap veterans who used Respironics and got a chance to try a ResMed...many, many of them and I think all but one reported that they liked the ResMed better for any number of reasons. It's not just me or PR...it's a bunch of other people who have ended up using both brands at some time or other.

[palerider]

I will take a stab at explaining why I prefer ResMed...and I have had a chance to use both brands...so I can speak from experience.
A lot of people don't have that luxury. ...

On the therapy issues I must bow to your superior wisdom. However, I would point out that just like I have a bias towards battery issues because I advise folks on that - you may have a similar bias about complex therapy problems. I've always had the feeling that the majority of people use moderate pressure and assuming they get a bit of help in the beginning they adapt fairly quickly. I wonder what percentage of folks use the advanced features you describe?

"Advanced features"? Like being much more responsive by default? All of them.

And, honestly, if your supposition were correct, the failure rate on CPAP would be much lower.

...
The newest ones take up less space on the side table.

Really? A few square inches ... offset by the fact that the Resmed has the hose coming out the back and the humidifier needs room on the side to pull out? Not to mention the DreamStation has a flat top that you can put things on (yes I do this almost every day). I'd say this ones a tossup.

Well, yes, for some people, the 88.92 sqin of the dreamstation vs the 59.33 sqin of the Resmed air machines is significant.

[palerider]

My job is optimizing cpap therapy....how to get the best results out of what we have given peoples own unique set of issues.

And isn't the quality of the therapy, every night, the most important thing?

Now, if they want a camping machine, and are willing to have less effective treatment while out under the stars.... Sure, why not?

Same for a travel machine.

[ybscc]

Thank you for the details.

A bit more about me. Unfortunately my insurance here doesn't pay for anything, so I have to buy the devices outright. The difference in price it large, but I also want to make sure that I start to heal and feel better. My wife is always complaining of me being "too tired"

I do travel quite a bit for work, but I don't spend much times outdoors.

I do not know what pressure I need. One important thing to note is that I live out of the US and the Cellular in the Airsense is of no use to me, I don't know if this is a big deal or not.

Thanks!

[palerider]

One important thing to note is that I live out of the US and the Cellular in the Airsense is of no use to me, I don't know if this is a big deal or not.

Thanks!

It isn't.

[Dog Slobber]

Comparison of Respironics and ResMed algorithm.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzCCgNLya_g

This is the previous models, but algorithms are still the same

[Pugsy]

How much of a price difference? What are the prices where you are at?

Consider buying from secondwindcpap.com.....they ship all over the world. Check out their prices for gently used and even new open box machines with zero hours.

If the price difference will create a hardship...get the DreamStation since it saves a bit of money....
or even look at the older discontinued models....System One Auto CPAP from Respironics just make sure it is the 560 model...or the ResMed S9 AutoSet model.

It's not like the Respironics machine is a crap machine...it's far from that. There are just some subtle differences between the 2 brands.
Odds are ...you would do just fine with the Respironics.
If you need a little more pressure with the Respironics because of its not so quick response time...it isn't the end of the world.
If the difference in money will create a hardship or take food off the table...by all means save the money.

[jimc2]

I do not know what pressure I need. One important thing to note is that I live out of the US and the Cellular in the Airsense is of no use to me, I don't know if this is a big deal or not.

Thanks!

The cellular is for compliance reporting. So your insurance company knows you are using it enough for them to pay. My first machine Respironics System One didn't have the cellular and it was a slight PIA to mail the card into the DME.

Since they aren't paying I can't see ANY value in the cellular in your case. I stayed with Respironics and got a Dreamstation about this time last year I think. I paid for it out of pocket and didn't bother with the cellular option.

[ajack]

xxxxxxx It's obviously the 'resmed for her'

Minor editing done by moderator to remove tasteless and inappropriate remark.