In many posts, users have shown how the Sleep Medicine - Insurance Establishment can provide totally inappropriate devices and settings, even after they get results of sleep studies and machine data. My case was no exception. Earlier I posted my sleep study results which show mixed (complex) apnea. Below I will post an example of the use of an APAP where the ASV is more appropriate and effective.
The various on line resources, YouTube videos, and this forum have been very informative and useful. I would like to thank the volunteers for all the knowledge and hard work.
Before this forum and OSCAR, I did not have the information to know what I should expect, or what was possible.
My sister was diagnosed with AFIB and severe central apnea, and her doctor prescribed the appropriate machine, ASV with programmable timing. Her DME totally screwed up the order, so it took some time before she received the prescribed machine. Her results have been great, AHI between 0 and 2.
I was able to get a slightly used ASV machine from a private party. The second and third charts show a typical good and a not so good (but tolerable) night with serious nasal congestion from Omicron.
This is an example of the APAP's effectiveness (or lack thereof) on treating central apneas:
It generated pressure pulses as breathing reminders, in place of the actual breaths that the ASV will deliver.
Below is an example of a recent night on the ASV:
If you look at the Patient Triggered Breaths chart (% spontaneous breathing) and also the mask pressure (blue chart) you will see some black marks along the top edge (also duplicated on the flow rate graph).
Those are the breaths initiated by the ASV (Auto Servo Ventilation) algorithm. This machine is set for a manual backup rate of 9 breaths per minute, so it will replace missing breaths if the respiration rate drops below 9.
Below is a night after developing Omicron symptoms:
These examples show why you need to get all the available information and, if necessary, be the squeaky wheel when it comes to getting the appropriate therapy.