Alan's New ResMed AirCurve 10 Vauto Came Today!

[Deborah K.]

Yep!  My husband's new machine came today with no advance notice.  I am starting to set it up for him.  It came with pre-set settings, which I think are set by the factory.  They show Max Ipap 25.0 and Min Epap 4.0.  On his old Philips bilevel, he was set at Max 25, Min 17.  We both don't think he needs settings that are so high any more.

In his first sleep study and titration done back in 2016, his AHI was, I think, 95, so those settings probably fit back then.  As his Pulmonary Sleep Specialist LOST those reports years ago, he had a second sleep study in October.  In this one, he only had an AHI of 30.1 - a big difference.  I don't know if that was because he went right from using his machine to the in-hospital study and titration, or if this was his true AHI.  They suggested a regular Cpap, set at 13.  That is what I used for a long time as my lowest pressure setting, so I am wondering if his machine should be set up with settings very similar to mine.

Would that be a good place to start?

(I have his new study here, but sending it may be tricky for me, so I thought I'd ask for help first, then see if I can add the attachment.)

[SarcasticDave94]

Sleeprider has a better answer. Mine was not quite right, having not used VAuto.

[Sleeprider]

What was his previous PS? I'm going to suggest EPAP min 10, PS ?? IPAP max 25. The Philips machines allowed a range for pressure support, and I'd rather start him at 4.0 unless his PS min was higher.

[Deborah K.]

His PS is 3 min and 6.5 max. So I should set him at Epap min 10, Ipap max 25, PS 4? What about the Ti max and min? His machine is set at max 2.0 and min 0.3.

[Sleeprider]

Sorry I didn't catch this last evening. PS 4.0 is a pretty conventional setting for bilevel and I think we can start there and judge if we need more or less, or even a trigger sensitivity adjustment. Default TiMin is 0.3, TiMax is 2.0. Without history, I can't advise on changing from default. The settings I suggested previously are best-guess based on what little I know of Alan's therapy. He is going to like the Resmed. It is a much more comfortable machine.

[Deborah K.]

One night, and Alan already LOVES his new machine!  He fell asleep faster, slept straight through the night, and woke up feeling great!  He can hardly believe what a change it has made, especially in just one night.  He is so grateful to me and to you for all the help he has received.  Like many, he is shocked and angry that his doctors, especially the so-called pulmonary experts, don't seem to know anything about these important issues.  Here is a report from November and then from last night:

   

   

Should I make any tweaks to his settings, or just wait for now?

Also, we are both shocked that he has not been constantly sneezing like he has for a long while.  I didn't say anything, but I did research, and sure enough, I learned that using SoClean has been proven by the FDA to cause sneezing and many more serious pulmonary problems.  I printed the results, and I think he will finally give up that awful machine.  Yay!

[Sleeprider]

Give him PS 4.4 and keep the rest the same. Looks like he didn't need that high pressure. No need at this time to make any Ti or trigger changes. Keep the SoClean away from the new Resmed. It will void the warranty.

[Sleeprider]

BTW, that is just wild how much different the flow rate looks and the drop in AHI from nearly 8 to under .6. Crazy! One of the best improvements I have seen moving from Philips to Resmed, and with a significant pressure reduction.

[SarcasticDave94]

Looks like a win to me. Congrats folks.

[Deborah K.]

Thanks!  We are both really happy.  Alan keeps saying this would never have happened without me.  Today he's been calling me "CPAP Dr. Deborah."  He is amazed that the Apnea Board offers more and better advice and help than any doctors.  It truly is amazing!  I'm so glad I found this board when I did.  I have gained so much from it, and I have been trying to help some people a little from what I have learned here.

So now we both have great new machines and better therapy than we could ever have found on our own.