[Equipment] prescribed a bipap machine

[silversnore]

Hi All,

I received my sleep study report today and surprisingly they have prescribed a Bipap machine, what are my best choices?  Also would it be appropriate to post my sleep study to the forum, I go back Tuesday to see about equipment.  Thanks in advance!!!  I think pressures where 11 and 6 as recomended.

[Sleeprider]

I would stick to one of the major players, either the Philips Dreamstation BiPAP Auto or the Resmed Aircurve 10 VAuto. Both are very good machines. You may be offered a choice of a fixed bilevel machine, i.e. BiPAP Pro or VPAP-S, and there is a big difference. Just like fixed CPAP and auto CPAP you want the auto. There are obviously differences in the Philips and Resmed auto bilevels, but nothing that would keep me away from either one, in fact I have both.

I'm curious why you were prescribed bilevel. You must have either had a very high pressure need or central apneas. Any chance you can post your study results?

[C0mbe]

Everyone is going to have their own opinions, but I would suggest sticking with Resmed or PR.  I would also get an auto-bipap if you can.  The same arguments for auto-titrating machines apply to bipaps as well:  patient needs vary on a daily basis because of health, diet, alcohol, etc.  The good news is that most bipaps (Auto or not) are fully data capable.        

I use a Resmed Aircurve 10 vAuto, and I love it.  I chose resmed over PR for my auto-CPAP because it was more comfortable and more effective (for me), and I already had a number of accessories, so I never tried the PR auto-bipap.  I think PR has a few more options for their bipaps (like variable pressure support) but that was a non-issue for me as my doc wanted me on a flat 4 for pressure support.

[justMongo]

@silversnore,

Yes, you can post your sleep study just like people post sleepyhead screenshots.
Best if you upload to a photo sharing site like imgur or photobucket.

***Important***
Most sleep reports have personal data in them like real name, et cetera.
Be sure to redact any personally identifying data.