What's the best CPAP machine?

Hi, I'm happy I found this message board and have read some interesting threads on it. I just did a sleep study at the Sleep Center at Weill Cornell in NYC. I don't have all the results yet. So far I've only been told it shows I have mild to moderate OSA. I have a follow-up appointment with the sleep doctor on the 7th and I assume she'll want me to buy and start using a CPAP machine. She told me before the sleep study that due to the supply chain problems, the CPAP machines that you can get through health insurance take 6 months to arrive. But that if I want one right away, I could buy one online, out of pocket, but that it will be an older model. I do want one as soon as possible and I'd like to know what the absolute best ones are. If anyone has any knowledge or opinion as to the best machine, please let me know. Or if there's been a thread on this topic, that you know of, I'd appreciate if you'd let me know. Thanks!

Chris33022 wrote: ↑

Wed Mar 30, 2022 6:03 pm

if I want one right away, I could buy one online, out of pocket, but that it will be an older model.

Not necessarily. Online vendors are now getting a supply of the latest ResMed AirSense 11 AutoSet (which is an excellent machine)
and the model it replaced is still widely available which is the AirSense 10 AutoSet.

https://www.cpap.com/productpage/resmed ... 11-autoset

https://www.cpap.com/productpage/resmed ... t-humidair

https://www.cpaptalk.com/viewtopic/t184 ... im495.html

Here is one of the best..from a very trusted seller.

JPB

The best machine is the one that adequately treats your condition, collects data and hopefully has available software to convert that data into readable reports to allow you to optimize your therapy.
It's only as good as you make it.

Den

.

The best machine is the one that means the most profit for your DME--
--or that's what they want you to believe.
Don't.

jimbud wrote: ↑

Wed Mar 30, 2022 6:58 pm

https://www.cpaptalk.com/viewtopic/t184 ... im495.html

Here is one of the best..from a very trusted seller.

JPB

I second this. I would buy this myself if I did not have one already. If you have a high deductible plan like me, getting a 4 month old top of the line machine would a good option to consider especially with all the extras included.

Has a sleep study to determine pressures needed???
That might affect the "best" machine selection.

So I wouldn't go buying anything until chat with the doctor is done and a decision on which type of machine is actually going to be needed.

ResMed AirSense AutoSet 10 or 11 model will check most the boxes but there might be special circumstances where it won't check all the boxes.

Thanks so much for all this helpful advice, everyone! And no, as far as I know a study was not done to determine the pressure. It was just to see if I have OSA. And don't worry I was definitely not going to buy a machine before having my follow-up with the doctor, but I wanted to have some knowledge of good machines before the appointment so that if the doctor recommends a different one, I could say, "But what about this other one I heard was good?"

I've worn a Wellue O2 Ring every night for months and sometimes my oxygen goes down to 73%. I also wore it the night of the sleep study and I showed the attending nurse my results, and even though she had told me she's not authorized to give me any results, when she saw my ring results on the app she did say that they did roughly correspond to the results they got. It was an average night for me. Not the worst sleep apnea and not the best. The ring/app said I had 6.1 per hour; 40 drops over 4%; and lowest oxygen was 85%. The nurse also sent me a report saying I had "Mild to Moderate OSA." I then called the sleep center to ask where were the rest of the results, which I thought would include a graph and more details and I was told the rest would come in a few days.

Chris33022 wrote: ↑

Thu Mar 31, 2022 10:47 am

I've worn a Wellue O2 Ring every night for months and sometimes my oxygen goes down to 73%. I also wore it the night of the sleep study and I showed the attending nurse my results, and even though she had told me she's not authorized to give me any results, when she saw my ring results on the app she did say that they did roughly correspond to the results they got. It was an average night for me. Not the worst sleep apnea and not the best. The ring/app said I had 6.1 per hour; 40 drops over 4%; and lowest oxygen was 85%. The nurse also sent me a report saying I had "Mild to Moderate OSA." I then called the sleep center to ask where were the rest of the results, which I thought would include a graph and more details and I was told the rest would come in a few days.

I wish I knew if that was good, bad or average. I was given a sleep study report with tons of data but all I was told was get an Auto CPAP 4-20 pressure and you will be fine. I have learned so much from the people here and from past messages. To put in some context for you I was diagnosed with "Severe OSA" with 47.2 events per hour - Avg. O2 92% / High 98% / Low 69%. Seems bad to me but I am sure they are many here that have me beat. Now with CPAP I am averaging just under 1 event per hour.

Thanks everyone! I got the results of my sleep lab study at Weill Cornell in NYC and was surprised. The report said I had severe sleep apnea when sleeping on my back but zero apnea sleeping on my sides. I stopped breathing 40 times per hour when sleeping on my back, and sometimes for as long as 52 seconds at a time. Is it unusual to stop breathing for that long during sleep apnea? Has anyone here heard of anyone stopping breathing for that long on this forum? Unfortunately I can only sleep one or two hours per night on my sides because my right hip gets very painful if I'm sleeping either on my right or left side for more than an hour or two.

I had my follow-up video appointment with the sleep doctor and she wants me to buy the exact same machine you guys recommended: The ResMed AirSense 11 (or 10) AutoSet. I said I wanted to get one right away and would therefore buy it out of pocket. She said I could just order it online from a vendor. She didn't want to recommend a specific vendor, though she did mention that CPAP.com is the biggest, and I think she also mentioned 800CPAP. Do you guys think it matters what vendor one chooses? Are there some you like more than others? Are there some to avoid? Any advice would be appreciated! Thanks.

cpap.com pays the bills for this forum so we aren't bombarded by ads all over the place.
I have no experience with 1800cpap so can't really comment on them.
I have purchased a couple of machines in the past from cpap.com and one of them developed a warranty issue and they shipped out a brand new machine to replace it.

Now I do remember a forum member coming here and saying that they had bought a supposedly new machine from 1800 cpap and when they got it the member found the machine was used and had a few hundred hours on it.
Paid for new and got used. We advised calling them up and explaining the situation and wanting a new machine since that's what was paid for. The member said that's what he/she would do. We never heard anything back so I assume he got it all worked out to his/her satisfaction because I figured if they hadn't we would have heard about it. Unhappy campers are usually pretty vocal. Happy campers don't always come back to tell us they are happy campers.

I think anyone who is looking at devices needs to really consider the Lowenstein models - https://homecare.loewensteinmedical.com ... p-therapy/ - I recently got a Prisma20A issued by my doctor here in Europe and what I can say is that its insanely quiet and the valve system for when you exhale is awesome.

Its so quiet I can hear rain on the roof and the birds singing in the morning and the exhale valve system is really hard to describe, it releases the pressure immediately on exhale so there is nothing to push back against. I wanted the Resmed 11 but after using this for 2 months, I don't want anything else.

I used another device until I was able to pick this up - a cheap thing called a Reswell Auto CPAP - but it was cheap and got me started when I was diagnosed and had to wait for delivery of my current device. I noticed with the cheap Reswell device that I was "breathing" with the device, kind of being forced to breath in and out with the machine. With the Lowenstein CPAP I don't have that at all - I breath how I want and there is ZERO pressure when exhaling.

I haven't used a Resmed or Philips device, but its hard to imagine they could be quieter than close to silent and the exhale feature is worth every penny - and it is German made so there is that as well.

My only gripe would be the hose does block the screen for me but I only need that if I want to see the time during the night (the screen auto switches off after it activates and I need to move the hose to touch the screen to get it to show the time).

swaussie wrote: ↑

Mon Apr 25, 2022 8:50 am

I think anyone who is looking at devices needs to really consider the Lowenstein models

OP in this thread is in the USA. The brand you are using isn't available here in the US at this time.
It's only available in Europe and since the OP is in New York USA...not an option.
This forum is US based and the bulk of the members are going to be from the USA and none of us have had the opportunity to compare your brand machine to the brands we normally have available here.
You have no way of knowing just how quiet the ResMed machine might be and we have no way of knowing how quiet the Lowenstein brands might be.

swaussie wrote: ↑

Mon Apr 25, 2022 8:50 am

it releases the pressure immediately on exhale so there is nothing to push back against. I wanted the Resmed 11 but after using this for 2 months, I don't want anything else.

Well, I certainly HOPE that you're wrong, because it's that pressure you're "pushing back against" that is what keeps your airway open so that you can take another breath.

swaussie wrote: ↑

Mon Apr 25, 2022 8:50 am

I breath how I want and there is ZERO pressure when exhaling.

See above.

For the more knowledgeable users, wouldn't the best machine (disregarding price) be an Resmed auto ASV? because it can be configured to perform like any of the simpler machines: CPAP, APAP, etc.