What is EPAP?

What is EPAP?

EPAP stands for Expiratory Positive Airway Pressure, meaning positive pressure is only exerted during exhaling. Most sleep apnea sufferers are only familiar with CPAP, which provides continuous pressure administered through a blower and mask.

Of course, this can lead to a great deal of discomfort related to ill-fitting equipment, difficulty in traveling with the CPAP machine, cleaning, noise, and even embarrassment related to its use. EPAP works with your own exhalation, meaning no power source or additional equipment is necessary.

How Effective is EPAP?

While EPAP is new to most of our patients and customers it has already been proven to be a successful form of sleep therapy for decades:

  • Expiratory Positive Airway Pressure (EPAP) has been known to be an effective treatment for Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) for almost as long as Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) 1

  • EPAP has been shown to treat OSA successfully since 1983 2

  • A pilot evaluation of EPAP created with an experimental nasal valve device was tested on thirty men and women and found to be effective in treating OSA and snoring 3

  • It was not until 2008 that the first commercially available EPAP device was cleared by the FDA.  It is a disposable device that is intended to be used one-night only 4

  • By 2011, nine peer reviewed published articles studying the effectiveness of EPAP had demonstrated clinically and statistically significant reductions in apnea hypopnea index (AHI), oxygen desaturation index (ODI) and sleepiness as well as high patient acceptance and compliance 5

  • A latter review of 18 studies demonstrated that EPAP can improve all of the OSA outcomes based on what can be measured during a sleep study as well responses from questionnaires.  The studies also showed that adherence to EPAP therapy was high for most studies 6

  • And now, in 2020, we are introducing ULTepap™, the ultimate in comfort and ease of use.  EPAP is in the name! 7