Questions from forum newbie

[wek29]

So, I hate asking questions without really getting a good read through the forum, but I've read enough to cause concern. I started CPAP in October of 2010 with the Escape 2. So far I'm pretty happy, or at least thought I was until reading here. I mean, I have little issues - leaks etc, but nothing that's been a real problem.

So questions...my guess is I am still in the "rental" period, should I be doing anything with regards to a new machine? I haven't read enough here to find out what I might be missing with this one, but it sure sounds like it's not a highly regarded machine. I am definitely one that was led to the maching by my provider, so I blindly accepted what they sold me.

I also keep running across posts mentioning data and that my maching doesn't track it. I'm going to keep reading old posts to try and figure it out, but what do I gain from this?

I guess it's possible this machine is just fine for me, I only have mild apnea but I figured I better ask while I might be able to do something about it...before the insurance co buys it.

[DaveMunson]

Ok. Deep breath.

1. You are free to choose.
2. You are free to request the best for you.
3. You are free to ask your doctor for what you believe to be the best machine for you.
... Doctor, The machine is fixed in pressure all the time and I feel like I need more in the beginning of the night and less later... it keeps waking me up... I think my pressure changed since December and I want a machine that adjusts automatically....
Can you talk to your doctor?
4. You are not required by anyone to keep it: you are renting it. Right?
5. You get to see the coolest look on your DME's face if you bring it back. Contact your insurance first and find out about the rental policy; this one don't work good and the doctor said it is not right for me....
6. The DME should be the -last- person to learn about you switching; set everything up with your insurance and doctor first, get a new script.
7. I don't know anything about the escape. I switched my machine after about a month many years ago.
8. Trust the reviews on this board. Both machines will save your life. Some machines will make this easier than others, provide more comfort, help when things don't feel right, help you sleep, warn you when things are not going right, are smarter on setting pressure, change with the seasons, time, part of the night, respond to your needs........

I'm on a auto machine. I know my pressure needs change as the night progresses, health, weather and seasons change; big believer in a good auto machine. Some times things don't go right. When it does, I pull the card and plug it into my computer to see why.

[wek29]

Thanks Dave! So it sounds like there could be issues that my machine is not smart enough to detect, or I could just be getting more from it. I went to a sleep institute who uses the DME, so I'm not sure if that changes anything. I am going to look into this just to make sure I am getting everything I need. I mean I am feeling way better than before the machine, so I never thought to question anything.

All this because I was trying to find a replacement hose and Google brought me here!

[BleepingBeauty]

So, I hate asking questions without really getting a good read through the forum, but I've read enough to cause concern. I started CPAP in October of 2010 with the Escape 2. So far I'm pretty happy, or at least thought I was until reading here. I mean, I have little issues - leaks etc, but nothing that's been a real problem.

So questions...my guess is I am still in the "rental" period, should I be doing anything with regards to a new machine? I haven't read enough here to find out what I might be missing with this one, but it sure sounds like it's not a highly regarded machine. I am definitely one that was led to the maching by my provider, so I blindly accepted what they sold me.

I also keep running across posts mentioning data and that my maching doesn't track it. I'm going to keep reading old posts to try and figure it out, but what do I gain from this?

I guess it's possible this machine is just fine for me, I only have mild apnea but I figured I better ask while I might be able to do something about it...before the insurance co buys it.

Hi, wek29, and welcome to the forum. First things first: Please click on the User Control Panel link (top left of the page) and edit your Profile to include your Equipment in your posts. Choose machine, mask, etc., from the drop-down windows, and choose to display in Text (rather than Icons). You can list your pressure or any other info in the Comments section. Then save the changes. Your equipment (and any comments info) will be listed at the bottom of each of your posts (like mine), and other forum members will more easily be able to assist you when you have a question or a problem.

The Escape is a perfectly good xPAP machine, for delivery of one set pressure. If it's treating your SDB (sleep disordered breathing) well and you feel rested and alert, that's great; but if your treatment isn't as effective as it should be, there's no way to tell what needs attention, because the Escape offers no efficacy data (i.e., how well the therapy is treating your apnea). You (and your sleep doc) can only go by how you're feeling, which is too subjective for most of us.

Having access to the data (how many apneas and/or hypopneas you're still having, whether they're scattered throughout the night or more concentrated in clusters, whether there are minor leaks or major ones, etc.) allows us to properly address whatever issues there might be. Your perceived "little issues" with leaks might be a much bigger problem than you think (or can know, without data). I had terrible leaks early on, but I also had a "dumb" machine at the time, so I had no idea the leaks were a problem that was impacting my therapy. Twenty months in, I found this forum; shortly thereafter, I purchased an APAP that provided me with data, and the leak issue was revealed. I was then able to work on it and achieve better treatment results. You'll find that most everyone here on the forum thinks data is important.

An auto-titrating CPAP machine (an APAP) will allow you to run it in CPAP mode (with one pressure, as your Escape does now) or in APAP mode (within a range of pressures). The advantage of APAP therapy is that it responds to events by increasing the pressure (to prevent more events from happening). Many find APAP to be far more effective than one fixed pressure, and others feel that the changing pressures are disruptive to their sleep. (We're all individuals, so what works for person A may not work at all for person B.) But it's generally better to have an APAP that can run in either mode, because it gives you more options for achieving effective therapy.

Even if you're unable to exchange the Escape for a machine that will give you (and your doc) the efficacy data, you're not dead in the water re: getting a data-reporting machine. There are good resources for good deals if you have to buy a machine out-of-pocket. If you have your prescription, you can purchase everything brand new from a site like the one that hosts this forum (https://www.cpap.com). Or you can find good deals on new or lightly-used equipment on their sister site (http://www.cpapauction.com), which is like ebay for xPAP supplies. Otherwise, there's always CraigsList (where I've been very lucky with all three machine purchases I've made there).

For future reference (if needed), bookmark this link to rested gal's current list of xPAP machines - ones that provide full data reporting and ones that don't: viewtopic.php?p=307168#p307168

Hope that helps.

[TooGroggy]

I also keep running across posts mentioning data and that my maching doesn't track it. I'm going to keep reading old posts to try and figure it out, but what do I gain from this?

Many of us believe that we can improve on the diagnostic of the sleep lab. The lab got a bunch of data (air pressure, breathing rate, blood pressure, oxygen level, leg movement, eyelid movement, brain activity, etc.) but only for one night. A data-capable machine will get you some of that data (mostly air pressure related) but for a whole bunch of nights.

To get more data, some purchase an oximeter which records blood pressure and oxygen level. A few even set up cameras to record sleep position and leg movement. I'm sure that one or two out there have gone off the deep end and set up a full sleep lab in their bedroom

But even if you are satisfied with the diagnosis of the lab, having a data-capable machine is helpful to understand why you sometimes wake up not feeling the way you normally do.

When I started on CPAP, I looked at the data every single day. In fact, it was the first thing I did when I woke up. It's now 5 months later and I only look at the data every couple of weeks, more out of curiosity than anything else.