How to Tell if Your CPAP Machine Pressure Is too High
Once you’ve completed a sleep study and have been diagnosed with sleep apnea, your doctor will recommend settings for your CPAP machine. The pressure settings are supposed to make your CPAP therapy as effective as possible without being too disruptive to your sleep. For patients with mild sleep apnea, these will be set low so there is simply a gentle stream of air being delivered. For moderate to severe sleep apnea, these settings will be higher.
If you believe your CPAP machine pressure settings are too high, you can visit your sleep doctor to determine if lower settings are right for your therapy. This is how to tell the pressure is too high.
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What Is CPAP Machine Pressure?
CPAP machine pressure settings determine how much air is delivered to your airway within a given amount of time. A low pressure setting only delivers a small amount of air whereas a high-pressure setting is accompanied by a whoosh sound from the air moving quickly.
On your CPAP machine, these pressure settings are measured in centimeters of water pressure. The average pressure setting for treating sleep apnea is 10 cm/H2O, which is the same pressure as drinking through a 10 cm straw. However, your recommended setting is likely to be anywhere from 6-15 cm/H2O. Patients who require higher pressure settings oftentimes need a CPAP machine with a high maximum and a high-pressure CPAP mask.
Factors that Affect CPAP Machine Pressure Settings
After the results of your polysomnography test are processed, your sleep apnea will be rated on a scale of normal to severe based on the number of interruptions caused by airway blockage.
- Normal: Fewer than 5 episodes
- Mild: 5-15 episodes
- Moderate: 15-30 episodes
- Severe: 30+ episodes
The severity of your sleep apnea is a major factor in your recommended CPAP machine pressure settings, but there are other things to consider as well. Your upper airway anatomy plays a role, as does the nature of your airway blockage—a collapsed soft palate has different requirements than a deviated septum, for example. Muscle relaxation from alcohol or REM sleep may also affect the pressure settings you need.
How Can I Tell if my CPAP Pressure Is too High?
Though multiple factors are taken into consideration when setting up your CPAP machine, there is a chance your pressure settings are too high. You need enough pressure to hold your airway open but not too much that you experience discomfort.
Air leaks, dry mouth, swallowing air, disrupted sleep and daytime fatigue are all signs that you might have your CPAP machine on too high of a pressure setting. Sleep experts also recommend watching out for pressure-induced central sleep apnea, which is the opposite of obstructive sleep apnea. With this disorder, breathing signals fail to be sent from the brain.
Sleep apnea patients are advised to wait for a doctor’s guidance before adjusting their pressure settings. Talk to your doctor about completing a CPAP titration study to arrive at the best settings for successful therapy.
Take Control of Your Sleep!
Sleep Apnea is frustrating! Getting the CPAP supplies you need isn’t with our amazing monthly plans that come with the name brand full-face CPAP mask of your choice plus free tubing, free filters, free cushions and free shipping! Plans start at just $25/month. Put your CPAP on autopilot today and … Leave the rest of to us!™ 30-day Fitmask™ Guarantee!
F.A.Q.
Monthly CPAP Club is a new approach to delivering a regular and scheduled shipment of all your CPAP supplies for one low monthly cost.
We charge you a small monthly free and deliver a fresh CPAP mask, tubes, filters and cushions to your door every 3 months.
We work with the major manufacturers to provide a selection of the most popular CPAP masks, cushions, tubing, filters and other accessories.
You get one shipment with all the CPAP supplies you’ll need for the next three months and you just pay one low, monthly payment.
Monthly CPAP Club lets you know when it’s time to change your filters, clean your mask and tubing. Three months after your first order, we’ll let you know (via email) that it’s time to replace your CPAP supplies, and we will ship out a package with a replacement mask, tubing, and filters for your CPAP machine, all including in your monthly fee.
Every package allows you to choose your preferred style of CPAP mask and the brand, make and model you prefer. You have the choice of standard tubing or heated tubing. You have the option for extended tubing options with heated tubing. Every package also includes cushions for the mask and filters for your machine
We need to know which CPAP breathing machine you use so we can send you the correct filters. Filters are specific to machines.
If you don’t see your CPAP breathing machine model listed, please contact us at sales@monthlycpapclub.com. Please include the make and model of CPAP breathing machine you use.
We do support many machines. The most popular machines are listed right now and more will be added as we grow.
In the mean time, let us know which machines you use so we get you the correct filters.
Monthly CPAP Club currently offers Resmed, Respironics, and Fisher & Paykel CPAP products. We can accommodate certain other brands when requested by email. Please let us know by emailing us at sales@monthlycpapclub.com or submit a request online.
Our goal at Monthly CPAP Club is to offer all the necessary CPAP supplies for good sleep hygiene in simple, scheduled quarterly shipments.
We want the program to be even easier for the end user to afford with a monthly payment.
When you sign up for a package with Monthly CPAP Club, you will be charged the monthly package amount ranging from $30 and up, depending on your preferences.
We will ship out a package within 1 business day of your order with all the CPAP supplies you’ll need to properly treat your sleep apnea with clean and effective supplies.
The next scheduled shipment for your account will commence 3 months after your initial first shipment. We’ll send you an email your next delivery is on the way.
The best part about Monthly CPAP Club for those living with sleep apnea is that CPAP supplies are one less thing you’ll have to regularly order, schedule or pick up. We ship you the supplies you’ll need for the next three months and ship you another package in three months will all new and fresh CPAP supplies.
We do sell most of the popular and newest CPAP machines. Although we do not list many of the machines on our Monthly CPAP Club site, we can process orders for machines via email for existing subscribers and over the phone for new users.
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Getting started is easy. Just click the button below. Choose your supplies, customize your plan and we’ll send your CPAP supplies straight to you! So take a load off and leave the rest to us!