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New CPAP user looking for OSCAR review (no DME)
#1
New CPAP user looking for OSCAR review (no DME)
Hi Everyone,

I was recently diagnosed with OSA (40.5 AHI) at the age of 26 and I responded well to CPAP treatment during my sleep study. My prescribed ramp pressure is 7cm with a set pressure is 14cm along with C-Flex +1. The machine I'm using is ResMed AirCurve 10 ASV but it's in CPAP-only mode. A family member was a DME for many years and had the machine new in box so they set it up and gave it to me for free. The only downside I've noticed is not having the C-Flex feature since it's hard to exhale at times.

I'm using the Amara View full-face mask until my ResMed Airfit F30 arrives. The first night was terrible due to large leaks 53% of the night so I'm not going to worry about the data there (the AHI was only 3.1 so it still helped). Last night, the mask fit much better and the AHI was 1.37. Since I'm not working with a DME, I'm hoping the experts here can review my chart and provide their input for my first successful night with CPAP.

Thank you!

           
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#2
RE: New CPAP user looking for OSCAR review (no DME)
G'day Walkingdead. Welcome to Apnea Board.

Congratulations of a great start to your treatment. And especially on the fact you have been diagnosed so early: it's probably not what one would wish for, but much better than having undiagnosed and untreated apnea for years to come, as many people do.

Your numbers look excellent, so from here it's really a matter of fine tuning things to maximise your comfort. You mentioned you had some difficulty breathing out but unfortunately the ASV in CPAP mode doesn't seem to have EPR (similar to flex). If this becomes an issue for you it should be possible to change to ASV mode and adjust the settings to mimic a fixed pressure machine with EPR. Let us know and we'll work something out. Alternatively it might be feasible to adjust your fixed pressure down a bit to ease the exhale but not so far that it affects the therapy.

By the way, you're very lucky getting that machine for free- they are expensive!

When posting your charts from Oscar, it helps to use a standard setup which shows the most important stuff and leaves out the less important. You will find the following wiki articles useful:

Oscar Help: http://www.apneaboard.com/wiki/index.php...OSCAR_Help

Organise your charts: http://www.apneaboard.com/wiki/index.php...ganization
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#3
RE: New CPAP user looking for OSCAR review (no DME)
(07-19-2019, 09:36 AM)walkingdead Wrote: Hi Everyone,

I was recently diagnosed with OSA (40.5 AHI) at the age of 26 and I responded well to CPAP treatment during my sleep study. My prescribed ramp pressure is 7cm with a set pressure is 14cm along with C-Flex +1. The machine I'm using is ResMed AirCurve 10 ASV but it's in CPAP-only mode. A family member was a DME for many years and had the machine new in box so they set it up and gave it to me for free. The only downside I've noticed is not having the C-Flex feature since it's hard to exhale at times.

I'm using the Amara View full-face mask until my ResMed Airfit F30 arrives. The first night was terrible due to large leaks 53% of the night so I'm not going to worry about the data there (the AHI was only 3.1 so it still helped). Last night, the mask fit much better and the AHI was 1.37. Since I'm not working with a DME, I'm hoping the experts here can review my chart and provide their input for my first successful night with CPAP.

Thank you!

   

You have an extremely sophisticated machine and don't need it!  I'm going to suggest you contact Supplier #2 by phone and offer to trade your Aircurve 10 ASV for a Resmed Airsense 10 Autoset with some cash to make up the difference in value.  You will get a brand new machine and some money for your efforts.  A lightly used ASV at Supplier #2 goes for $1749 and the new Airsense 10 Autoset for Her sells for $789 (Open Box).  So you can probably walk away with a machine that better meets your needs, is under warranty and support, and some cash for your effort.  Win-win!

If you get the Airsense 10 Autoset, you will have an auto CPAP machine that uses a bilevel pressure difference to provide 1 to 3 cm exhale pressure relief.  We have found this machine is superior to the Philips Respironics Auto CPAP in comfort and efficacy.  It looks like you will do just fine if you decide to go this route. 

There is no way to program the ASV to provide a limited bilevel pressure support without the non-invasive ventilation (ASV) algorithm that will try to maintain your minute vent.  Other members (JesseLee) have tried it, and he ended up trading his ASV for an Aircurve 10 Vauto (auto-bilevel machine).  This would be another option.
Sleeprider
Apnea Board Moderator
www.ApneaBoard.com

____________________________________________
Download OSCAR Software
Soft Cervical Collar
Optimizing Therapy
Organize your OSCAR Charts
Attaching Files
Mask Primer
How To Deal With Equipment Supplier


INFORMATION ON APNEA BOARD FORUMS OR ON APNEABOARD.COM SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED AS MEDICAL ADVICE. ALWAYS SEEK THE ADVICE OF A PHYSICIAN BEFORE SEEKING TREATMENT FOR MEDICAL CONDITIONS, INCLUDING SLEEP APNEA. INFORMATION POSTED ON THE APNEA BOARD WEB SITE AND FORUMS ARE PERSONAL OPINION ONLY AND NOT NECESSARILY A STATEMENT OF FACT.
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#4
RE: New CPAP user looking for OSCAR review (no DME)
(07-19-2019, 09:50 AM)DeepBreathing Wrote: G'day Walkingdead. Welcome to Apnea Board.

Congratulations of a great start to your treatment. And especially on the fact you have been diagnosed so early: it's probably not what one would wish for, but much better than having undiagnosed and untreated apnea for years to come, as many people do.

Your numbers look excellent, so from here it's really a matter of fine tuning things to maximise your comfort. You mentioned you had some difficulty breathing out but unfortunately the ASV in CPAP mode doesn't seem to have EPR (similar to flex). If this becomes an issue for you it should be possible to change to ASV mode and adjust the settings to mimic a fixed pressure machine with EPR. Let us know and we'll work something out. Alternatively it might be feasible to adjust your fixed pressure down a bit to ease the exhale but not so far that it affects the therapy.

By the way, you're very lucky getting that machine for free- they are expensive!

When posting your charts from Oscar, it helps to use a standard setup which shows the most important stuff and leaves out the less important. You will find the following wiki articles useful:

Thanks for the warm welcome! Glad to hear that I'm on the right track. I'm looking forward to getting my energy back and having the desire to do things. My family has been urging for years to get a sleep study and I'm so glad that I finally did. Yes, the free machine is a life saver! My insurance is basically useless with my $6,000 deductible and lack of sleep benefits.
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#5
RE: New CPAP user looking for OSCAR review (no DME)
(07-19-2019, 10:16 AM)Sleeprider Wrote:
(07-19-2019, 09:36 AM)walkingdead Wrote: Hi Everyone,

I was recently diagnosed with OSA (40.5 AHI) at the age of 26 and I responded well to CPAP treatment during my sleep study. My prescribed ramp pressure is 7cm with a set pressure is 14cm along with C-Flex +1. The machine I'm using is ResMed AirCurve 10 ASV but it's in CPAP-only mode. A family member was a DME for many years and had the machine new in box so they set it up and gave it to me for free. The only downside I've noticed is not having the C-Flex feature since it's hard to exhale at times.

I'm using the Amara View full-face mask until my ResMed Airfit F30 arrives. The first night was terrible due to large leaks 53% of the night so I'm not going to worry about the data there (the AHI was only 3.1 so it still helped). Last night, the mask fit much better and the AHI was 1.37. Since I'm not working with a DME, I'm hoping the experts here can review my chart and provide their input for my first successful night with CPAP.

Thank you!

   

You have an extremely sophisticated machine and don't need it!  I'm going to suggest you contact Supplier #2 by phone and offer to trade your Aircurve 10 ASV for a Resmed Airsense 10 Autoset with some cash to make up the difference in value.  You will get a brand new machine and some money for your efforts.  A lightly used ASV at Supplier #2 [url=http://www.apneaboard.com/forums/Thread-CPAP-Supplier-List][/url]goes for $1749 and the new Airsense 10 Autoset for Her sells for $789 (Open Box).  So you can probably walk away with a machine that better meets your needs, is under warranty and support, and some cash for your effort.  Win-win!

If you get the Airsense 10 Autoset, you will have an auto CPAP machine that uses a bilevel pressure difference to provide 1 to 3 cm exhale pressure relief.  We have found this machine is superior to the Philips Respironics Auto CPAP in comfort and efficacy.  It looks like you will do just fine if you decide to go this route. 

There is no way to program the ASV to provide a limited bilevel pressure support without the non-invasive ventilation (ASV) algorithm that will try to maintain your minute vent.  Other members (JesseLee) have tried it, and he ended up trading his ASV for an Aircurve 10 Vauto (auto-bilevel machine).  This would be another option.

Great suggestion! I'll follow-up on this.
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#6
RE: New CPAP user looking for OSCAR review (no DME)
Just wanted to check-in since my first post. My AHI has dropped to 0.37-0.38 the last two nights since switching to the AirFit F30 mask. I'm starting to sleep longer as well. My wife heard me snore a few times last night. Is that normal with treatment? I also noticed that my AHI is always comprised of Unclassified Apneas and Hypopneas.

   
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#7
RE: New CPAP user looking for OSCAR review (no DME)
That's excellent. You have done a great job identifying what works and then improving on it.

If you talk to Supplier #2 about a trade, I'll be interested to hear how things work out.
Sleeprider
Apnea Board Moderator
www.ApneaBoard.com

____________________________________________
Download OSCAR Software
Soft Cervical Collar
Optimizing Therapy
Organize your OSCAR Charts
Attaching Files
Mask Primer
How To Deal With Equipment Supplier


INFORMATION ON APNEA BOARD FORUMS OR ON APNEABOARD.COM SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED AS MEDICAL ADVICE. ALWAYS SEEK THE ADVICE OF A PHYSICIAN BEFORE SEEKING TREATMENT FOR MEDICAL CONDITIONS, INCLUDING SLEEP APNEA. INFORMATION POSTED ON THE APNEA BOARD WEB SITE AND FORUMS ARE PERSONAL OPINION ONLY AND NOT NECESSARILY A STATEMENT OF FACT.
Post Reply Post Reply
#8
RE: New CPAP user looking for OSCAR review (no DME)
Hi All,

Bumping my old thread to seek your help. My AHI numbers are great (never > 1) but I feel even worse than before treatment. The biggest symptoms that I just can't get passed are nasal congestion, shortness of breath and a recently developed irregular heartbeat. These are all contributing to insomnia so I'm only getting 3-4 hours of actual sleep a night (validated with Apple Watch). I alternate between different masks, with the F30 providing the lowest leak rate and AHI. Leaking is always a struggle with my beard unless the mask is super tight, as you will notice in my charts.

I'm still using the ASV machine in CPAP only mode and I'm starting to think this may be my issue (thanks to a PM from JesseLee). Do you see anything in my recent OSCAR charts that might validate that theory? One thing I noticed is that my AHI is always comprised of Hypopnea and Unclassified Apneas. It's never OSA or CSA.

Thank you so much for your help!


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#9
RE: New CPAP user looking for OSCAR review (no DME)
"One thing I noticed is that my AHI is always comprised of Hypopnea and Unclassified Apneas. It's never OSA or CSA."

asv in auto mode is said to resolve ca so it doesn't identify the apnea type, calling all apnea events ua, even in cpap mode. ua are usually assumed to be oa. however, cpap doesn't treat ca so you might see more ca flagged as ua in that mode.
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#10
RE: New CPAP user looking for OSCAR review (no DME)
It’d be a good idea to see your doctor about the shortness of breath and the irregular heartbeat.
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