is exhalation relief really necessary?

[Sleepster]

However, the problem with the F&P Icon is that there is no exhalation relief. And without it, I wake up several times per night with my mouth open and air rushing out.

I don't see how that's related to the exhalation pressure relief. EPR is a comfort feature and if you don't need it there's no reason to have it.

A chin strap is used to help prevent mouth-leaking.

The whining sound could be a result of the elevated breathing rate we have when we first put on the mask. After we calm down our respiration rate falls and the whining goes away.

Both of these issues tend to subside as our bodies and minds adapt to CPAP therapy.

There are several advantages to the ResMed S9 autoset so I would try to keep it if you can. Some white noise in the background helps muffle the sound of the CPAP machine.

[megan_charles]

However, the problem with the F&P Icon is that there is no exhalation relief. And without it, I wake up several times per night with my mouth open and air rushing out.

I don't see how that's related to the exhalation pressure relief. EPR is a comfort feature and if you don't need it there's no reason to have it.

The mouth leaking is definitely related to the lack of exhalation pressure relief. There was no mouth leaking on my Respironics machine; then I switched to the Icon and started mouth leaking; switched to a Resmed Autoset and stopped mouth leaking; turned off the exhalation relief on the Resmed and started mouth leaking again. I suspect it's just my body looking for an easier way to expel the air...out the mouth instead of against pressure. Fortunately, it's not enough to raise my leakage stats very high...I'm well under the Resmed 24L/min max.

After throwing my mask across the room a few nights ago because I was so frustrated by the noise of the Resmed Autoset, I decided that the F&P Icon is definitely the right choice for me. I picked it up today, along with a chin strap. Using a fan or other white noise is fine as long as I am at home, but not necessarily possible when travelling. I want a machine I can live with all of the time.

I will order the Infosmart software tomorrow (since I'm in Canada I have to order by phone instead of online). I hope I don't have the same problems with installation that others on this forum have had.