Difference between Bi-level & EPR/Easy breathe technology

[scrapper]

What is the difference between bilevel machines and the epr/easy breathe technologies?

[Llama]

Hey, I just asked this question in a different thread.

I was wondering the same thing and, while I am certain that a more knowledgeable source will chime in shortly, it seems to me that the only difference is the ability to drop pressure during exhalation greater than 3cm that EPR at 3 can do.

My wife is getting a BiPAP and her inhalation pressure is 15, but her exhalation is 11. If she used the AutoSet II at EPR 3 she would end up with an exhalation pressure of 12 and I am guessing that this still caused her central apneas and/or she would not sleep deeply breathing against it. ::::

[dsm]

Hi

Technically both are the same but the bilevel machines tend to have more adjustments.

EPR like bilevels, works with a lower exhale pressure (usually called epap) & a higher inhale pressure (usually called ipap). EPR is restricted to 1, 2 or 3 CMs gap between inhale (ipap) & exhale (epap) vs much more flexible settings on a bilevel.

However EPR has a feature that many straight bilevels don't & that is that when the machine is operating in EPR mode & it detects breathing problems (say snores), it can stop the EPR by raising the pressure to the inhale level & staying there until the event clears then resumes the two level operation again. Allowing that EPR can support a gap as high as 3 CMs, that provides a very clever way of quickly clearing many events.

DSM