While hospitalized recently for pericarditis I was given a bi-PAP to use to treat my sleep apnea. The only problem was was that the bi-PAP was so noisy, unlike the CPAP that I have at home, which is not noisy. Has anybody had similar experiences?
When I was in the hospital for a sleep study, the bipap they hooked me up with was noisy and uncomfortable to breathe with. BUT, my personal bipap (Resmed Malibu) is so quiet and so very comfortable for breathing and I love it.
Kelly
So should I have used the Bi-PAP when I was in ICU even though the loud noise from the bi-PAP prevented me from getting sleep? I went w/o the bi-PAP while I was in ICU since the noise prevented me from getting sleep. My CPAP at home is so quiet. I have no problem getting to sleep.
Wayne,
I need a Bi Pap type machine because I have central sleep apnea. As I understand it, the variable pressures between inhaling and exhaling are necessary to create an internal jolt that prevents the brain from “forgetting to let you breathe when you sleep.”
I use a Res Med VPap III ST machine. It’s much quieter than some of the “old clunker” BiPaps that were tried.
I also use a 45 minute “ramp” where there is only one pressure. The idea is to let me get to sleep the old-fashioned way, and then the alternating pressures kick in after I’m asleep. I think I’d have trouble GETTING to sleep if it weren’t for this ramp approach.
Also the VPap contains a computer chip that collects data while in use. My sleep disorder doctor, who is a neurologist, used this chip to by pass the need for an overnight sleep study. This is great because I had a bad experiences with overnight sleep studies where they actually did more harm than good, and actually did the opposite of what my doctor requested. My doctor took the data from several days of using the VPap with settings she put in based on her past experience. Then after seeing the data she’d adjust the settings until she was finally satisfied that they’d been optimized. I feel that the same way. I no longer have the day time drowsiness and involuntary naps.
If you don’t have a doctor that can (or will) do for you what mine did for me,. let me know. Maybe your doctor could consult with mine. If that isn’t possible, maybe you could contact my doctor for help.
I hope this information is helpful to you.
Frank
Why were you put on a BiPap in the ICU when you use a CPAP at home?
Oh, because in ICU I told them that I have sleep apnea. So when I was hospitalized they tried to take care of my sleep apnea since I was going into surgery. However, instead of giving a nice quiet CPAP like I have at home they gave me a noisy Bi-PAP.
I am assuming this was an emergency situation?
When I had my knee surgery I took my own cpap up to the hospital with me.
Everyone was very good about it.
Pamh
Oh, so it wasn’t a case of your having central sleep apnea versus obstructive sleep apnea. Are you saying this was the only machine they could get their hands on?
Any one who needs a machine to be able to sleep properly falls into a special category. Their breathing machine is very much like life support. And a BiPap machine takes a lot longer to adjust to than a CPAP machine.
I recently took my first air plane flight since 9/11. Because of the limitations on what you can carry onto the plane versus checking, I had no choice but to carry on my VPap machine and everything related to it, i.e. mask hoses, etc. I simply couldn’t afford to risk them losing my luggage and having no life support equipment to use until the luggage was found and returned to me.
So this was a valuable learning experience for you. Next time you’ll know better, and take your breathing equipment with you to the hospital, just to be safe. If you need a machine to enable you to breathe properly and safely, you simply can’t leave the matter to chance. Your situation has emphaized this fact to all others participating on this list.
Frank