CPAP News Letter - Issue: 11

Our newsletter is designed to provide information regarding state-of-the-art equipment and the latest techniques to treat sleep apnea. We hope it is interesting and helpful to you as you work to optimize your apnea treatment.

Resmed has been busy developing new sleep disorder products. The headline news is surely the very innovative Mirage Activa Mask System. The mask features a suspension system between the hard frame and the cushion. Our initial work has confirmed that the amount of strap pressure needed to maintain a seal is lower than any mask we know of. We have a little video of this mask at work so you can see the suspension system at work. While this is the most expensive nasal mask ever, it is a real performer.

Resmed has updated their bilevel offerings with the VPAPIII and the VPAPIII ST machines. These new full featured machines have gone on a serious diet as compared to the VPAPII. Both use the S7 cases and are fully compatible with the integrated H2I Heated Humidifier. The machines are equipped with new technology Resmed states improves patient comfort by keeping the machine in sync with the users inhalation and exhalation, even in the presence of mask and mouth leaks. New Autoscan version 5.4 software allows access to a wide range of data from these new machines.

Resmed has followed up the very successful AutoSet Spirit with a lower cost AutoSet Respond. The unit is different from the Spirit only in that is has much reduced internal memory and download capability. Many patients have no need to use download and would prefer a lower cost machine with the other features of the Spirit. These include AutoSet® technology, and optional integrated humidification.

Fans of the Acclaim and Acclaim II will want to check out Fisher & Paykel's new nasal mask system, the Flexifit Series HC405.

Nasal prong mask offerings continue to expand. They now consist of the Nasal Aire, the Nasal Aire II, and the Spiritus. Viasys has added a small size to their Spiritus offerings and have begun to sell replacement prongs.

We have been offering Nasal Aire prongs for some time but have not yet been able to offer Nasal Aire II prongs (we will keep trying). While the Nasal Aire II prongs are quieter, the prongs are very different from the original Nasal Aire in Medium, Large, and Extra Large sizes. The small sizes are not identical but close enough. Be careful of the sizing when switching from Nasal Aire to Nasal Aire II. At least the Nasal Aire prongs will fit on the Nasal Aire II and vice versa.

The results of a recent study to be presented at the 68th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology suggests that gastroesophageal reflux (GER) may in some cases cause obstructive sleep apnea.

GER suspected of causing sleep apnea

Here is an interesting article on flying with CPAP equipment. I would add to the article that at some airlines are telling CPAPer that they cannot use the equipment on board due to electromagnetic interference with flight control.

Flying with CPAP equipment

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Sincerely,

John Goodman
cpap.com