EPR Seems Not To Offer Any Benefit
The more I read, the less success I see with EPR.
I started with an EPR of 3 a couple of weeks ago. I lowered it to 2 last night plan to shut it off soon due to CA popping up on OSCAR - I'd like to see if that drops off when the EPR is turned off.
RE: [split] EPR Seems Not To Offer Any Benefit
Unless your data is showing flow limitations or low tidal volume, the EPR feature will be more for comfort than for therapy. Actually, Resmed lists this feature as a "comfort" feature.
09-24-2019, 08:28 AM
(This post was last modified: 09-24-2019, 08:30 AM by ragtopcircus.)
RE: [split] EPR Seems Not To Offer Any Benefit
I’ve gone both directions on the Dreamstation (Flex instead of EPR).
Breathing feels the most natural to me at 2. 3 feels like my chest (and airway?) collapses suddenly when I exhale. 1 provides good airway support, and is great when my deviated nose is really clear (rarely, unless I sell my soul to Afrin for one good night’s sleep). If my nose is not very clear though, I feel like I have trouble exhaling enough to make room for the next breath. Although few FL events are actually flagged, the flow graph does show some limitation. I don’t normally breath through my mouth. Since my nose feels a size too small most nights (appearance notwithstanding), I’m experimenting with going back up to 3.
Capsaicin, Xylitol, Fluticasone, etc all help, but often not enough.
09-27-2019, 12:12 AM
(This post was last modified: 09-27-2019, 12:14 AM by DarthSandman.)
RE: [split] EPR Seems Not To Offer Any Benefit
(09-24-2019, 08:28 AM)ragtopcircus Wrote: Breathing feels the most natural to me at 2. 3 feels like my chest (and airway?) collapses suddenly when I exhale. 1 provides good airway support, and is great when my deviated nose is really clear (rarely, unless I sell my soul to Afrin for one good night’s sleep). If my nose is not very clear though, I feel like I have trouble exhaling enough to make room for the next breath. Although few FL events are actually flagged, the flow graph does show some limitation. I don’t normally breath through my mouth.
This sounds similar to what I've experienced (in less than a month of use... ha).
3 just felt like too much and I think "collapsing" is a good description. I found myself with Resmed/OSCAR indicating a lot of Central Apnea.
I've lowered my EPR to 2 and the feeling is fairly natural. The last couple of nights I found myself looking at the machine or lifting the max away to make sure it was still putting propper pressure because it all felt so much like normal breathing. Now, my AHI is lower.
I may try 1 and keep in mind your experience given I also have a deviated septum/perpetually swollen passages.
09-27-2019, 07:35 AM
(This post was last modified: 09-27-2019, 07:48 AM by ragtopcircus.)
RE: [split] EPR Seems Not To Offer Any Benefit
Btw, Flex and EPR levels are not directly comparable, but the principle still applies: if you can’t push the air out, there’s no room for the next breath. After a particularly rough night of that, my muscles were so exhausted that breathing was difficult all through the next day.
In sports car suspensions, especially if setup for competition, it is common to tune the shock absorbers so that the rebound damping (resistance to rising again after a bump) is much stiffer than bump damping. Without going down that rabbit hole, I’ll just say it makes the car feel more responsive. However, if taken too far, it will cause the car to jack itself down onto the bump stops. Each bump and rebound cycle takes it lower until there is nowhere left to go.
However, I don’t claim any expertise with the therapeutic implications, especially regarding CA.
