My Doctor has ordered a auto pap with a card for me, I have had a c-pap for 1 1/2 years. Can You help? If you had a choice of machines, which one would you get? And Why? Thanks a lot for your help.....noni


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REMstar M Series with a comfort gel ff mask, pressure of 13

CPAP.

Autoadjusting machines CAN cause excessive arousals from the pressure adjustments and the machine may not always be able to adjust in time to eliminate all of the respiratory events.

Just my opinion though.

I should have said that the reason for the change is every 6 months it seems that I need to get my pressure changed. I went from 12 to10 to 13 and am waiting for the results from my last sleep lab now. It seems I begin having PVC's and when I get the c-pap pressure changed I stop having them for a couple of months.


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REMstar M Series with a comfort gel ff mask, pressure of 13

Straight CPAP provides better therapty.  BUT if you can't tolerate it, auto-pap can be the difference between compliance and non-compliance.  I have severe problems with aerophagia and suffocating sensations, so I use auto.

Sigh. This is a no-brainer. An APAP is better simply BECAUSE it can be used in straight CPAP mode and then IF you appear to need a pressure change it can be switched to auto mode for an at-home auto titration in place of yet another expensive in-lab titration.

However, I consider full data capability more important than APAP. Fortunately, most, if not all, APAPs are fully data capable. Not all CPAPs are fully data capable. Just because an xPAP has a data card does NOT mean it is fully data capable.


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Some people are like Slinkies... Not really good for anything, but they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.
Resmed VPAP Auto. Humidaire 3i, Simplicity mask, ResScan 3.7, S8 ResLink, Embla oximeter.

If cost is not an option, then certainly and APAP setup as CPAP would work the same. But I do know that insurance companies are beginning to push back against APAP machines and I cant really blame them.

Why on earth do you think INSURANCE COMPANIES are the ones balking about supplying a patient w/an APAP??? An APAP is the exact same HCPCS (insurance code) as a straight CPAP and since billing is done by HCPCS code, NOT by brand or model, where does the insurance company even know or enter into which is provided?? It is the local DME PROVIDERS who are refusing to provide the APAPs, NOT most insurances.

If manufacturers only had to provide two models of CPAP - fully data capable CPAP and fully data capable APAP, prices could come down drastically. If they only had to produce two bi-level models - fully data capable straight bi-level and fully data capable auto bi-level, bi-level prices could come down drastically. If manufacturers only had to provide ST and SV ..... you get the drift.

MOST of the time the only difference between the various models of one type of device is the internal software. And software can be expensive to develop.


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Some people are like Slinkies... Not really good for anything, but they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.
Resmed VPAP Auto. Humidaire 3i, Simplicity mask, ResScan 3.7, S8 ResLink, Embla oximeter.

The thing is, I am getting a a-pap machine.....Which brand would you buy?


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REMstar M Series with a comfort gel ff mask, pressure of 13

I have a Resmed S8 AutoSet II.  It's a bit pricey but well worth it in my opinion.  It's small, easy to use and unbelievably quiet.

I prefer the Resmed devices over the Respironic M Series. While therapy from either is equal for most everyone, the ease of access to and the amount of data available via the LCD puts Resmed way ahead of Respironics in my personal opinion. Resmeds also excel over the N Series in ease of use and set up and in packing and carrying for travel.


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Some people are like Slinkies... Not really good for anything, but they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.
Resmed VPAP Auto. Humidaire 3i, Simplicity mask, ResScan 3.7, S8 ResLink, Embla oximeter.

CrohnieToo wrote:

Why on earth do you think INSURANCE COMPANIES are the ones balking about supplying a patient w/an APAP??? An APAP is the exact same HCPCS (insurance code) as a straight CPAP and since billing is done by HCPCS code, NOT by brand or model, where does the insurance company even know or enter into which is provided?? It is the local DME PROVIDERS who are refusing to provide the APAPs, NOT most insurances.

If manufacturers only had to provide two models of CPAP - fully data capable CPAP and fully data capable APAP, prices could come down drastically. If they only had to produce two bi-level models - fully data capable straight bi-level and fully data capable auto bi-level, bi-level prices could come down drastically. If manufacturers only had to provide ST and SV ..... you get the drift.

MOST of the time the only difference between the various models of one type of device is the internal software. And software can be expensive to develop.

Maybe because they are taking !@#! from the medical industry. It is likely that an APAP device can eliminate a patients need to ever need a re titration, however that would be in violation with this forum, so lets keep that hypothetical. Dont get me wrong, if I were a patient, I would always want an APAP device, ALWAYS. In fact, I would probably go to extremes to get the APAP device.

I thought that I read on here about an insurance company refusing payment for an APAP...I will recheck that though. Err. Edit.. I misread that. It was an insurance company refusing to pay for fully data capable machines (which I guess would included APAP).

Dang, APAPs should be coded separately. Its crazy that APAP and CPAP machines are in the same category...

For now it is to our advantage that they are. Many w/some ingenuity, diplomacy and in some cases patience, ARE able to convince their local DME provider to give them an APAP. I still say that full data capability is MORE important than whether it is an APAP or a CPAP.


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Some people are like Slinkies... Not really good for anything, but they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.
Resmed VPAP Auto. Humidaire 3i, Simplicity mask, ResScan 3.7, S8 ResLink, Embla oximeter.

I also have a ResMed Autoset II w/EPR.  I think it's great.  I was originally prescribed it in cpap mode at a set pressure, but now my Dr. has it set as apap with a range of 9-20.  My AHI numbers are great.


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ResMed Auto Set II w/hi4 Pressure 9 - 20 EPR at 3 SleepWeaver, Mirage Micro, Liberty, FitLlife
Orig AHI 30.4 RDI 36 & RLS/PLMB

Glad to hear you are doing so great, TXLadybug! Congratulations. What is your usual reported Pressure??


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Some people are like Slinkies... Not really good for anything, but they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.
Resmed VPAP Auto. Humidaire 3i, Simplicity mask, ResScan 3.7, S8 ResLink, Embla oximeter.

I like my auto IntelliPAP much better than my auto M series and my P-B 420.  My favorite things are that the IntelliPAP is small and very quiet.  It uses an AC power cord; there is no power brick.  You can plug both the AC power cord and DC battery cord into the machine and it will automatically switch over to the battery when the AC power goes out.  I don't notice when the IntelliPAP changes pressure, which I did with mt auto M.

If you use a humidifier, it just plugs into the bottom and fully integrates into the machine (including the power, controls, and air connections).  The humidifier and machine become one integrated unit; there is no adapter, no hose, and no additional power cord.  Because the humidifier is on the bottom, it is very unlikely that water will spill into the machine.