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[Equipment] Just Joined AB Introduction and equipment question - Printable Version

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Just Joined AB Introduction and equipment question - daveb - 03-27-2018

Hey Everyone...  I just joined the board, I am very pleased to find such a resource.  

Diagnosed back in 2007, just picked up our new (2nd) APAP machine, delving into it's capabilities and is so doing found this board.

We have a brand new (here in canada) F&P Sleepstyle SPSAAN box.  Taking a quick look around the forum did not see any mention of it anywhere, just wondering if anyone else has this box?  and if so what they think about it.

thanks.


RE: Just Joined AB Introduction and equipment question - DeepBreathing - 03-27-2018

G'day Dave. Welcome to Apnea Board.

Most of us here use either Resmed or Philips machines - they are the market leaders and are well supported by software such as #Sleepyhead.

Fisher & Paykel are a very well regarded New Zealand company who produce a range of medical devices but are best known here in Oz for their whitegoods. Most people who have an F&P machine seem very pleased with them. They do most or all of the things that Resmed and Philips can, though I think there is a doubt over the most recent model's ability to work with #Sleepyhead. This may or may not be important for you - SleepyHead provides a far more detailed analysis of your sleep and breathing than the web-based or app style software provided by the manufacturers.


RE: Just Joined AB Introduction and equipment question - pholynyk - 03-27-2018

Quoting DB>>>I think there is a doubt over the most recent model's ability to work with SleepyHead. <<<

Not much doubt in my mind - I'm pretty sure it doesn't yet. Unless they didn't change anything from the Icon...

Just for reference, DaveB, which province are you in, and did they pay for any part of your machine? And can you find software from F&P to look at your data?


RE: Just Joined AB Introduction and equipment question - Sleep2Snore - 03-27-2018

They do have a phone app though, but not the detail Sleepyhead does.
https://sleepstyle.fphcare.com/


RE: Just Joined AB Introduction and equipment question - Ron AKA - 03-27-2018

(03-27-2018, 12:43 AM)daveb Wrote: Hey Everyone...  I just joined the board, I am very pleased to find such a resource.  
Diagnosed back in 2007, just picked up our new (2nd) APAP machine, delving into it's capabilities and is so doing found this board.
We have a brand new (here in canada) F&P Sleepstyle SPSAAN box.  Taking a quick look around the forum did not see any mention of it anywhere, just wondering if anyone else has this box?  and if so what they think about it.

Dave,

It so happens that I have been using a trial F&P Sleepstyle SPSAAN machine for almost a week now. My immediate thought is that if you still have a chance to return it, that you should. I have compared it to the ResMed S9 that my wife uses and I find her machine to have more features and is easier to use. If you want me to give you more detail on the differences I can do that. But first off, SleepyHead does not support it. 

My suggestion is the ResMed AirSense 10 AutoSet. It is the upgraded version of the ResMed S9. I don't think the ResMed is any more expensive than the SleepStyle, but that may depend on your insurance situation and where you are getting it.

After trying the SleepStyle and borrowing my wife's S9 for a night I decided on the AirSense 10 and have one on order.


RE: Just Joined AB Introduction and equipment question - Ron AKA - 03-27-2018

Dave, I was in a bit of a rush to leave when I made my first response to your question. Let me say that I have no reason to suspect the overall performance of the SleepStyle machine. I was originally not sure it was working well and switched it with my wife's S9 Resmed. She typically gets in the 0.6 to 1.0 for AHI. The one night she used the SleepStyle she got an AHI of 0.2 -- her best ever after being on the S9 for 3 years now. So it works!

That said, I do find a number of lets say limitations with the SleepStyle compared to the S9 and the newer AutoSense 10. Whether these are important or not will depend on how involved you want to be in customizing the setup. Here are some of the issues that I recall:

SleepyHead software - Does not appear to support the Sleepstyle SPSAAN. It seems to recognize the the memory card as an Icon model, but I couldn't get SleepyHead to import the data. I downloaded a plug-in from F&P that was supposed to let you upload the data to them and let you view it. Couldn't get that to work either, but that may be because it is trial loaner. And that plug in may be interfering with the SleepHead import. Since I am taking the Sleepstyle back, I didn't exhaust all possibilities. The Resmed machines work in SleepyHead.

Off/On button - Pain in the butt. It is not lit up at night and you can't feel where it is either. The machine does not start or shut off automatically like the S9 does, so you need to find the button in the night. 

Controls/display location - They are on the front which is a pain to look at. The S9's are on top which I like. The AirSense 10 is on an angle so kind of compromise.

Ramp Function - On the S9 you set it up with the user controls. On the SleepStyle you have to hold the on off button down for 3 seconds on every start or it does not ramp. By default there is no ramp. There is also no control on the length of the ramp even in the clinical menu that I recall. On the SleepStyle the ramp is either on or off. The AirSense 10 has an auto start feature, that starts the ramp when it detects you are asleep. 

Start Pressure - Both machines let you set Minimum Pressure and Maximum pressure. However the S9 also has a start pressure that you can set for the ramp. The SleepStyle is fixed at 4 cm which is kind of low. Some may feel short of air at that setting. 

EPR - Both have 4 settings; off, 1, 2, 3. However the S9 allows you to to apply the EPR to only the ramp period, or full time. The SleepStyle is off or full time. 

SenseAwake - This is a feature (about the only one) that the SleepStyle has that the ResMed does not. I have not tried it yet, but this is how they describe it; "A responsive ramp throughout the night. When wakefulness is detected, treatment pressure is automatically and promptly reduced to a more comfortable level. This eases the return to sleep and helps effective treatment to continue." Seems like a good idea. On the ResMed if you get up for a P the machine shuts off automatically (if you have that turned on). Then it starts automatically, and starts at the beginning of the ramp again. 

That is about all I can think of. In short if you just want to turn it on and will let the provider set it up, and have no real interest in optimizing, the SleepStyle may be just fine. If you want to tweak it, then I think you would be happier with a ResMed.