There is so little about Resmed on the forum that I am inclined to feel as thou it is a low end in good equipment. Are other brands more efficient or better suited to individual needs. I dont know any better than what has been delivered to me by the DME. I am approachiong one year and don't know if my clinical results are up to good results from when i started in 3/05..
Barnaby
is Resmed any good
is Resmed any good
"He's not heavy..he is my brother" - Shriners Creed
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Snoredog
Resmed machines are good quality equipment. The technology of the Spirit may not be up to par with the competition like the Remstar, 420E and the Devilbiss, these all contain a more responsive pneumotach sensor the Spirit doesn't, not sure if the new S8 vantage model comes equipped with one or not. Maybe Perry knows, he used to dissect them on a regular basis.
Prior to the S8, the Spirit was always their flagship product. As a result, I'm a little disappointed in reading on the various forums that the S8's are noisy (even compared to the old Spirit).
Comparing the Spirit to the Remstar, 420E, it wins hands down when it comes to displaying data on the LCD especially since the others don't display anything. The Resmed has good tracking of mask leak and can give you your nightly AHI scoring. So you can see even without the software what you did the night before not just hours of use. The Resmed Spirit is a full featured machine has some neat features not found on the other, like Settling. Settling is like a Ramp feature on a basic cpap but in the case of the Spirit it stays at the lower pressure and doesn't respond to events seen for the timer period. Due to the different way the Spirit responds to events (always increasing pressure) like snoring, it's a good feature to have.
However, comparing reporting software, the Spirit's AutoScan software (don't care what version) comes in last place compared to the others. It only shows AHI events, leak and pressure then it doesn't do a very good job at displaying that info so it is understandable by the avg. patient. Resmed develops everything for the sleep doctor and doesn't pay much attention to what the patient wants. It does give you a summary page with the details, but if you want to track details like determining the difference between a snore, hypoapnea or apnea your pretty much out of luck. The Spirit triggers heavily off of snore, so if your a chronic snorer you might want to think twice about the Spirit or you would be better off with a straight cpap. Because if you snore the Spirit will blow the top of your head off trying to eliminate them. If your a snorer, to prevent that you have to establish a high pressure limit on this machine. The 420E responds with a similar response the Remstar Auto doesn't do this at all.
The Spirit does treat differently as compared to the Remstar or the 420E. The Spirit responds with pressure and continues with said pressure as long as the event is seen. By comparison if a Remstar increases pressure to eliminate a particular pattern seen then it probes for the event if the # seen doesn't go down it backs off pressure. You can clearly see it do this in the daily auto-reports from the EncorePro software (even better results displayed with Derek's software). The Remstar remains the quieter of the machines comparing at the same given pressure.
The Spirit's integrated 2i Humidifier is also very good, has good temp settings, more difficult to fill while on the machine but can be overcome by using a small 3" funnel with clear curved hose attached to the funnel. The Spirit is not the greatest machine to have for travel, it's heavy, not very good for RV use as it requires an inverter.
At this point if I was buying another autopap, I'd probably wait to see what the new M series Remstars have to offer. If not, I'd have to go with Remstar Auto w/Cflex, right now it is pretty hard to beat.
Prior to the S8, the Spirit was always their flagship product. As a result, I'm a little disappointed in reading on the various forums that the S8's are noisy (even compared to the old Spirit).
Comparing the Spirit to the Remstar, 420E, it wins hands down when it comes to displaying data on the LCD especially since the others don't display anything. The Resmed has good tracking of mask leak and can give you your nightly AHI scoring. So you can see even without the software what you did the night before not just hours of use. The Resmed Spirit is a full featured machine has some neat features not found on the other, like Settling. Settling is like a Ramp feature on a basic cpap but in the case of the Spirit it stays at the lower pressure and doesn't respond to events seen for the timer period. Due to the different way the Spirit responds to events (always increasing pressure) like snoring, it's a good feature to have.
However, comparing reporting software, the Spirit's AutoScan software (don't care what version) comes in last place compared to the others. It only shows AHI events, leak and pressure then it doesn't do a very good job at displaying that info so it is understandable by the avg. patient. Resmed develops everything for the sleep doctor and doesn't pay much attention to what the patient wants. It does give you a summary page with the details, but if you want to track details like determining the difference between a snore, hypoapnea or apnea your pretty much out of luck. The Spirit triggers heavily off of snore, so if your a chronic snorer you might want to think twice about the Spirit or you would be better off with a straight cpap. Because if you snore the Spirit will blow the top of your head off trying to eliminate them. If your a snorer, to prevent that you have to establish a high pressure limit on this machine. The 420E responds with a similar response the Remstar Auto doesn't do this at all.
The Spirit does treat differently as compared to the Remstar or the 420E. The Spirit responds with pressure and continues with said pressure as long as the event is seen. By comparison if a Remstar increases pressure to eliminate a particular pattern seen then it probes for the event if the # seen doesn't go down it backs off pressure. You can clearly see it do this in the daily auto-reports from the EncorePro software (even better results displayed with Derek's software). The Remstar remains the quieter of the machines comparing at the same given pressure.
The Spirit's integrated 2i Humidifier is also very good, has good temp settings, more difficult to fill while on the machine but can be overcome by using a small 3" funnel with clear curved hose attached to the funnel. The Spirit is not the greatest machine to have for travel, it's heavy, not very good for RV use as it requires an inverter.
At this point if I was buying another autopap, I'd probably wait to see what the new M series Remstars have to offer. If not, I'd have to go with Remstar Auto w/Cflex, right now it is pretty hard to beat.
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Snoredog
Snoredog wrote:
<snip>
However, comparing reporting software, the Spirit's AutoScan software (don't care what version) comes in last place compared to the others. It only shows AHI events, leak and pressure then it doesn't do a very good job at displaying that info so it is understandable by the avg. patient. Resmed develops everything for the sleep doctor and doesn't pay much attention to what the patient wants. It does give you a summary page with the details, but if you want to track details like determining the difference between a snore, hypoapnea or apnea your pretty much out of luck. The Spirit triggers heavily off of snore, so if your a chronic snorer you might want to think twice about the Spirit or you would be better off with a straight cpap. Because if you snore the Spirit will blow the top of your head off trying to eliminate them. If your a snorer, to prevent that you have to establish a high pressure limit on this machine. The 420E responds with a similar response the Remstar Auto doesn't do this at all.
<snip>
Hi,
This part of what was said mystifies me as I regard the AutoScan data as vastly more reliable that what I was getting from my RemStar AUTO ? although I certainly regard the RemStar AUTO as one of the top line AUTOs in quality quietness, robustness (built like a panzer tank) etc:.
here is a link to the data AutoScan produces & it includes AI & HI & AHI & Leaks ?
http://www.internetage.com/cpapinfo/aut ... index.html
I still have not found any displays in Encore that show the data is such a straight forward format as AutoScan. MyEncore (written by Derek to make up for the inadequacies of Encore does improve presentation but I dispute the accuracy).
Have you recently used AutoScan ?
Also, the 2i humidifier on the Spirit was not that good. Difficult to fill & not so easy to set accurately but ResMed to their credit have made vast improvements in the new 3i h/h used with the S8 family.
The S8 auto belongs at the top of the range of AUTOs.
Cheers DSM
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CPAPopedia Keywords Contained In This Post (Click For Definition): 420E, resmed, CPAP, AHI, auto
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CPAPopedia Keywords Contained In This Post (Click For Definition): 420E, resmed, CPAP, AHI, auto
xPAP and Quattro std mask (plus a pad-a-cheek anti-leak strap)
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Colorado Jan
Jan, yes.
You can see the data on the display as with the S7 line.
Also ResMed have added a set of alarms that a user or DME can set that fire off to advise when
1) Filters should be checked
2) Suggested mask liner replacement
3) Visit to dr etc:
Cheers DSM
You can see the data on the display as with the S7 line.
Also ResMed have added a set of alarms that a user or DME can set that fire off to advise when
1) Filters should be checked
2) Suggested mask liner replacement
3) Visit to dr etc:
Cheers DSM
xPAP and Quattro std mask (plus a pad-a-cheek anti-leak strap)
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sapphireskye
- Posts: 121
- Joined: Fri Dec 23, 2005 2:22 pm
- Location: Colorado
- Contact:
Can you use different software with the Remstar
I am reading about reliability and things here about the different software and readouts. Are any of the software programs from other companies other than respironics, compatible with the Remstar Machines? I don't know how all this works and am just curious.
Thanks in advance
Chelle
Thanks in advance
Chelle
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Colorado Jan
Barnaby,
Just to add a little of what I have been able to compare, I used a Resmed VPAP III (BI-PAP) and now have a RemStar Auto with C-Flex. As one poster mentioned, the RemStar is quieter - that's true. For what it is worth, filling the Remstar humidifier resivoir is much easier than the taking out the Resmed's humidifier tank to fill it.
Just to add a little of what I have been able to compare, I used a Resmed VPAP III (BI-PAP) and now have a RemStar Auto with C-Flex. As one poster mentioned, the RemStar is quieter - that's true. For what it is worth, filling the Remstar humidifier resivoir is much easier than the taking out the Resmed's humidifier tank to fill it.
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Snoredog
PEELS wrote:
Both machines (Remstar & Spirit) have that silicone coupler that couples the machine to the humidifier tank, removing the tank often to refill/clean can sometimes cause that coupler to wear prematurely where it eventually fails and leaks. This seems to be a bigger problem found on the Remstars, I have to continually slide the humidifier tank off mine, pull on the metal coupler ring to pull the coupler out a bit on the Remstars then slide the tank into the coupler, otherwise it can develop a leak at that coupler junction where it appears as a large mask leak. With the Patient alarm enabled, it can be enough of a leak to trigger that.
hey dsm: Can you show us a Hypoapnea and snore on the AutoScan graphs?
As mentioned you can use a small 3" plastic funnel with a clear 1/2" ID hose attached to the end of the funnel to refill the 2i humidifier without removing it from the machine. You fill it by removing the delivery hose and using that orifice. When using my Remstar I remove the clear plastic hose from the funnel and fill the Remstar humidifier without removing it from the machine.For what it is worth, filling the Remstar humidifier resivoir is much easier than the taking out the Resmed's humidifier tank to fill it.
Both machines (Remstar & Spirit) have that silicone coupler that couples the machine to the humidifier tank, removing the tank often to refill/clean can sometimes cause that coupler to wear prematurely where it eventually fails and leaks. This seems to be a bigger problem found on the Remstars, I have to continually slide the humidifier tank off mine, pull on the metal coupler ring to pull the coupler out a bit on the Remstars then slide the tank into the coupler, otherwise it can develop a leak at that coupler junction where it appears as a large mask leak. With the Patient alarm enabled, it can be enough of a leak to trigger that.
hey dsm: Can you show us a Hypoapnea and snore on the AutoScan graphs?
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Snoredog
Gee SDSnoredog wrote:dsm wrote:yeah I knew you couldn't, cause the Spirit doesn't respond to hypoapneas and doesn't record either.I give in, I don't think I can post better quality BS thansome of the points you posted.
Sorry if my reply upset you,
I thought it 100% appropriate to where you were taking some of your unsubstantiated opinion points.
DSM
xPAP and Quattro std mask (plus a pad-a-cheek anti-leak strap)
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SnoozeCat
SC,
Please PM me or provide a direct email so I can discuss - I see you don't have a valid login (like SD who I wanted to PM way back but couldn't because of his (& your) guest status).
I was hoping this thread would not degenerate into a kindergarten squabble but without PM access to posters it can be difficult to avoid when it turns into an 'I said', 'you said' or 'hey your remarks fly in the face of my testing' etc: sequence. Pissing contests really have no place here & I appologise for having got caught in and having propagated this one again I wanted to PM SD after his 1st post but that option was not available.
So please PM me - many thanks
DSM
Please PM me or provide a direct email so I can discuss - I see you don't have a valid login (like SD who I wanted to PM way back but couldn't because of his (& your) guest status).
I was hoping this thread would not degenerate into a kindergarten squabble but without PM access to posters it can be difficult to avoid when it turns into an 'I said', 'you said' or 'hey your remarks fly in the face of my testing' etc: sequence. Pissing contests really have no place here & I appologise for having got caught in and having propagated this one again I wanted to PM SD after his 1st post but that option was not available.
So please PM me - many thanks
DSM
xPAP and Quattro std mask (plus a pad-a-cheek anti-leak strap)