The Importance of Maintaining CPAP Settings
More pressure won't necessarily help with severe apnea
Most people will naturally assume that the more severe the apnea the higher the CPAP air pressure should be. That’s not necessarily the case. Everyone is different and every apnea is different, so it’s safe to say that everyone’s air pressure needs are different as well. For example, a grown man with sleep apnea might need less air pressure than a kid who has the same condition.
Yes, at times, the more severe the apnea case the more air pressure the person might need. They may even require intervention with bilevel therapy, which is essentially an upgraded CPAP machine that is set with two pressure settings, one for the patient’s inhales and the other for their exhales. However, for the most part, the only way to determine at what level the air pressure needs to be set at is by closely working with a sleep technologist and monitoring the patient’s reaction to different settings.
