Validation of automatic CPAP leak algorithm.

Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (OSA) is a prevalent disease. Reliable estimation of respiratory parameters by devices used to treat OSA is important for therapy initiation and maintenance. This is achieved by estimating patient flow in the presence of inadvertent leak from the total flow measured by the device. A method of validating the patient flow estimation of an Automatic Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (APAP) device is described. Novel techniques of a multi-composite simulant head and recorded patient flows are used. The APAP device tested was shown to reliably estimate patient flow across a range of therapy pressures, leak conditions and breath types.