The encyclopedia · Product & Design · Product decision · 1981–1989
ResMed turned Sullivan's nasal CPAP into a home device and built a sleep giant
CPAP is a pneumatic splint for the airway during sleep; after Baxter passed, ResMed bought the technology in 1989 and made it quiet, comfortable and home-ready.
ResMed
the move
In 1981 Colin Sullivan and colleagues at the University of Sydney described nasal continuous positive airway pressure: five patients with severe obstructive sleep apnoea slept through the night when low pressure (4.5-10 cm H2O) through a nose mask acted as a pneumatic splint for the airway.
Baxter invested in the prototype but decided not to enter the market. In 1989 Peter Farrell founded ResMed, bought Sullivan's sleep technology from Baxter and set out to commercialize the CPAP prototype at scale — more comfortable masks, quieter machines, home use.
The company went from 9 employees in 1990 to more than 8,000 by 2017, with 11 million patients remotely monitored. CPAP became the standard first-line treatment for obstructive sleep apnoea worldwide.
why it works
- The therapy worked non-invasively, so the potential market was enormous and underserved.
- Comfort and quiet engineering made nightly use acceptable to patients.
- Machines and masks create recurring demand, not a one-time sale.
- Remote-monitoring data added a sticky service layer on top of hardware.
what transfers
A proven clinical mechanism is not a business — the winner is whoever removes the friction between the treatment and daily life: noise, comfort, usability and service.
what came after
ResMed expanded into masks, ventilators and digital health, became a global leader in sleep and respiratory care, and its commercial success made nasal CPAP the default therapy for sleep apnoea.
references
- Reversal of obstructive sleep apnoea by continuous positive airway pressure applied through the nares (Lancet, 1981)
- We are ResMed — our place in history
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