[Pressure] Best settings for my machine?

[Chuck]

Thanks for your warning about APAPs Sleepster. I was thinking about getting one. But it sounds like a BiPAP would be better.
My doctor is not knowledgeable about or terribly concerned about sleep therapy. I can tell from my limited conversations with him that it isn't a topic he is interested in or takes very seriously. He disagreed with me for instance when I told him that my HBP is likely due to insufficiently treated apnea, even though I am otherwise healthy.
I will have to pay the DME and my doc for new pressure orders. Because the place where I had the sleep study went out of business, the DME will probably press for a new sleep study. This all comes out of my pocket.

I read a story (on here or elsewhere?) about new Medicare reimbursement schemes for sleep therapy and equipment. I noticed on Craigslist that there are a couple local DMEs for sale, also trying to sell off their inventory. There are a lot of businesses in my city selling PAP equipment off-market.

So last night I went to sleep with pressure at 10 cm and C-Flex 3. I woke up feeling CA-ish about 3 am, and bumped up the pressure to 11 and left the C-Flex alone. I swallowed less air and felt better this morning than I have lately (although I'm still tired). I'm going to leave the machine at current settings tonight and probably Saturday night. If that doesn't work, then I'm bumping pressure up higher - to 13, my original setting - and will see what happens.

[PaulaO2]

Let it set for longer. Let it go for at least a week. We never sleep the same way, twice. So a single night or even several nights is not enough to really determine if anything is working or not.

Constantly making changes to the high pressure is not going to help you much unless you wait some time between each change.

[zonk]

More importantly, there is no research to indicate that APAP's are really a good idea.

APAP can provide effective therapy provided it set right not in wide range (4-20) as in some cases. The notion that S9 AutoSet can runway with pressure and cause central apnea is a false one probably was the case with the older machines. The S9 AutoSet can differentiate between obstructive and central apnea and only treat obstructive apnea. APAP can be set in fixed or auto mode while CPAP can only be set in fixed mode so it,s like having two machines in one. S9 AutoSet works quite well for me and also I don,t have insurance or the luxury of getting a machine replacement every so often.

[Sleepster]

The notion that S9 AutoSet can runway with pressure and cause central apnea is a false one probably was the case with the older machines.

I'm not a medical professional, but I've heard people here on this forum claim that they had to lower their APAP pressure because it would sometimes go too high, raising their AHI.

[Sleepster]

So last night I went to sleep with pressure at 10 cm and C-Flex 3. I woke up feeling CA-ish about 3 am, and bumped up the pressure to 11 and left the C-Flex alone. I swallowed less air and felt better this morning than I have lately (although I'm still tired). I'm going to leave the machine at current settings tonight and probably Saturday night. If that doesn't work, then I'm bumping pressure up higher - to 13, my original setting - and will see what happens.

Are you looking at your data to see if you really are experiencing a lot of CA's? That's really the only way to tell.

[zonk]

The notion that S9 AutoSet can runway with pressure and cause central apnea is a false one probably was the case with the older machines.

I'm not a medical professional, but I've heard people here on this forum claim that they had to lower their APAP pressure because it would sometimes go too high, raising their AHI.

what,s the point and how is it related to what I said.

[Chuck]

I've always responded quickly (for better or for worse) to changes to therapy, so I don't mind changing settings daily.
After feeling poorly on lower pressures, I raised it back to the original prescribed pressure of 13 on Saturday. I slept better the past 2 nights. I didn't have time to review data on Sleepyhead.

I used C-Flex 3. I notice that the C-Flex feature doesn't always track my breathing rhythm well, and it tries to inflate me during exhalations, then reduces pressure during inhalation. I may need to shut it off. A review of my records this past year on Sleepyhead shows that my best nights statistically were the ones I had C-Flex shut off. So I'll shut it off tonight. I'll probably be bloated tomorrow, but them's the shakes.

[CHanlon]

I've never had a data capable machine. My sleep doc does not like APAPs so I doubt he is interested in any data at all.

Yes, I will most likely switch sleep doctors.

Yeah, I had the exact same situation with mine. I had 3 different RTs tell me that "Oh, you should ask your Dr to set you up with an APAP, it's not that hard, just a letter from them to say you had a hard time with CPAP, here we even have a pre written one..." and he wouldn't even discuss it. Right up until I said, "look, just write the prescription and I'll order one myself and to heck with justifying it to insurance..."

Of course, I'm pretty sure he owns part of the RT clinic he sent me to for the machine... once he realized I had no intention of buying a machine there, he lost interest in me. My last visit there ended with "come back in a year..." and when I booked the appointment I mentioned that I'd probably forget by then..."no problem, we always call a couple days before to remind you." Except they didn't. I actually remembered it - see? CPAP helps! - but since they didn't bother calling, I didn't bother going.