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SULLIVAN Comfort Operating Manual
4
1
Introduction
How bi-level treatment works
Obstructive sleep apnea or OSA occurs when the tongue and soft palate relax
during sleep, blocking the airway and cutting off the brain’s supply of oxygen. To
treat OSA, nasal CPAP (Continuous Positive Airway Pressure) was developed in
1981 by Dr Colin Sullivan in Australia.
In CPAP treatment, a flow generator unit provides air through a nose mask at a
slightly raised pressure which keeps the airway open. The level of air pressure
varies according to individual needs.
Conventional CPAP treatment is carried out using a constant air pressure which
can sometimes make breathing out uncomfortable. Bi-level treatment is an
extension to conventional CPAP designed to overcome this. Treatment is carried
out in a similar way, except that the flow generator delivers two pressures – a
higher pressure when you breathe in and a lower pressure when you breathe out.
Your physician will prescribe two pressures: an inspiratory or IPAP pressure
for when you breath in; and an expiratory or EPAP pressure for when you
breathe out. These pressures are determined during a sleep study and set by the
sleep clinic staff or your equipment supplier.
The SULLVAN
®
Comfort™ operates in a spontaneous mode, where it delivers
your IPAP and EPAP pressures in response to your breathing pattern. For example,
during your inspiratory breath the unit delivers your IPAP pressure; then your
expiratory breath triggers the unit to switch to your EPAP pressure.
This spontaneous mode of operation is aided by the set IPAP maximum time.
This is the maximum length of time, within each breath period, that the flow
generator will deliver your IPAP pressure before it switches to your EPAP
pressure. Therefore, if your expiratory breath should fail to trigger the unit to
switch to your EPAP pressure, the unit will switch automatically when your IPAP
maximum time is exceeded.
The IPAP maximum time is factory set. For some patients only, the physician will
prescribe an individual IPAP maximum time to be set by the sleep clinic staff or
equipment supplier.
If you feel that you are no longer getting relief from your symptoms of sleep
apnea, consult your physician immediately for advice.