New Member With Some Questions

[Jenady]

Hello everyone.

On a whim I decided to search to see if there are any forums of folks who use CPAP. So here I am.

Over twenty years ago I was diagnosed with OSA. I was on CPAP for a year and it worked amazingly well. Then I had the surgery. I had my deviated septum repaired, my uvula removed, my tonsils removed, and part of my soft pallet removed. I was one of the lucky ones. The surgery worked and was off the machine.

For the past two or three years I complained to my doctor that I was tired all of the time. It never occurred to me that I might have apnea again. Only after he retired and I had a new patient visit to my new doctor did things start to happen. She sent me for a new sleep study. In the words of the sleep specialist I have "really severe apnea".

I was set up with a ResMed S9. The supplier showed me how to set it up, turn it on, and how to wear the pillow. That's it. I was told nothing about cleaning other than I should do it. I was also told that they would do any adjustments.

I was able to sleep OK from the first night but I did not get the amazing boost that I did with my first machine. I was put on a recording pulseoximeter(sp) for a night. I guess that went OK because I did not hear anything from anybody.

I do not care for the ramp up so I turned that off. My machine is set to 13. I am not sure what unit of measure that is. The humidification is set to 3. I do use about half of the water every night.

Once I started reading here I realized how much I do not know about what is going on with me and my machine. I see fancy charts posted that I assume come from the S9. How do you create those and where can I find out what they mean? I understand that I need to PM someone for links to ResScan and manual downloads. Will those things answer my questions?

I am sure I don't really know what questions to ask but I feel like I missing a lot of valuable information. So, I will be visiting here often.

[STL Mark]

Welcome to the neighborhood (forum). I'm a newbie here. Fought the issue of getting a sleep study for years. Consider creating a profile and entering in your exact type of S9 machine and it will help others answer your questions that come up. There are many knowledgeable people here that I have learned from.

[Slinky]

Welcome to the forum! You did all right. 15 years or so success w/the surgeries. And glad you recognized you needed a current sleep study.

Darn sorry to hear that your OSA is now severe though. NOT fun. But glad to hear you are now back on PAP therapy.

Yeah, that local DME providers sounds about par for the course. There seem to be a lot of that type out there.

WHICH Resmed S9 do you have? The Resmed S9 Elite? The Resmed S9 AutoSet? - Or (I hope not) the Resmed S9 Escape?? You do NOT want the Escape! Look on the top of your S9 and see what model it is. If it isn't the Elite or the AutoSet RUN back to the DME provider and toss it thru their window to get their attention and let them know it is NOT satisfactory. You weren't born yesterday to have an entry level dumb CPAP pawned off on you!

Well, you can catch more flies w/honey than you can w/vinegar. Use some diplomacy and tact - but you get my drift. Take it back ASAP.

Meanwhile, Uncle_Bob is the one you want to PM.

[Jenady]

My machine is an S9 Elite. I didn't realize there was more than one model. Sorry.

[Topsail Girl]

No feedback from me yet - I just wanted to say welcome from another newbie-ish.....

[Slinky]

No need to apologize. I wasn't born knowing how to read. There's a lot to learn about this CPAP bit. You've got a good CPAP there. The S9 Elite provides a lot of data via the LCD screen.

[jweeks]

My machine is an S9 Elite. I didn't realize there was more than one model. Sorry.

Jenady,

That is a great machine. The important stat on this machine is that it is fully data capable. That means that you can take the SD card in the machine and plug it into your PC and download your data. You'll need to get the ResScan software and have a standard SD card reader. From there, you can create graphs and track your data. Even without the software, you can still read your AHI number off of the screen. You will want to look at that number and track it for a while since you are just getting started again.

The next model up from your machine is a APAP. That is a nice thing to have since it can auto adjust the pressure to best treat your disorder. Some folks like the APAP, others do better on CPAP. In any case, the nice feature of APAP is that you can run on auto from time to time, and see if the machine comes up with a better pressure level. CPAP machines also provide great treatment. Your machine has a thing called EPR. That can make it easier to breathe with by reducing the pressure a bit when you breathe out. If that isn't turned on, you may want to enable it. There are different levels of EPR. You may want to experiment with different settings.

Another great feature of your machine is the optional climate line tubing. That keeps the tube warm, which can eliminate any issues with rainout (ie, the machine trying to drown you).

If you do get the software installed and working, I'd love to see you post some reports. I don't know what they mean, but as a math person, I like to see numbers and graphs.

-john-

[Jenady]

In another thread I discovered that the S9 Elite that I have a receipt for is actually an S9 Escape. Now I understand why the screens on my machine do not match the ones in the manual and why I can not see my AHI number. Should I still be able to use ResScan 3.12?

[rested gal]

The ResScan software can be used to download data from the Escape CPAP. BUT -- the download would be of no interest, or help, at all to you.

The software would not be helpful because the only data an Escape CPAP records is "hours of use" (compliance.) There is no AHI or leak data recorded by either the S8 or the S9 Escape CPAP machines.

I'd be trying to get the DME to swap the Escape for an Elite.

My list of machines that record "full data" (AHI and leak info) and those that don't -- updated through March 2010:
viewtopic.php?p=307168#p307168

The ones in blue record full data. The ones in red do not.

In case the DME tries to convince you that a machine provides the kind of "data" you want to see, simply because it happens to have a card stuck in it:
viewtopic.php?p=344265#p344265

For some entertaining reading about that:
check out LinkC's post on page 2 of this thread:
viewtopic.php?p=342111#p342111
And roster's post on page 3 of that same thread.

[Slinky]

IF you have a receipt for an S9 ELITE, take that Escape back to the DME provider and tell them they have made a mistake and provided the WRONG CPAP. NOW. ASAP. INSIST that they provide you w/an S9 ELITE.

IF they try to tell you you signed for the Escape so you are stuck w/it. Just tell them you assumed they didn't have an Elite on hand and were just loaning you the Escape until the Elite came in. If you want to give them a graceful "out" for their trying to pawn an entry level PAP on you.