Study uses bench test to compare efficacy of APAP devices for sleep-disordered breathing

A study conducted in France compared the efficacy of 11 commercially available autotitrating positive airway pressure (APAP) devices for the treatment of obstructive sleep-disordered breathing and evaluated the accuracy of the device reports. Results show that all APAP devices performed differently when subjected to simulated sleep-disordered breathing patterns on a bench test using an active lung simulator and a Starling resistor. Large differences were found between APAP devices in treatment efficacy and accuracy of the report data. According to the authors, the results show that both bench studies and clinical evaluations are necessary to test APAP devices. The study is published in the July issue of the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine.

Read the study in JCSM: All APAPs Are Not Equivalent for the Treatment of Sleep Disordered Breathing: A Bench Evaluation of Eleven Commercially Available Devices