Blister in nose from nasal pillow

[somnia16]

I was using nasal pillows and found they worked really well as am a side sleeper as well as back sleeper. Unfortunately I have developed irritation on side of nostril despite constant moisturizing of nasal passages and neosporin. I am afraid if I continue to use the pillows, it will just get worse. Any recommendations for a nasal mask for a woman with fairly small face and active sleeper? Thanks

[Coffee Man]

I had a similar issue. I do well with under nose nasal cushion (Dreamwear). It sits under the nose, rather than inside the nose. It is noisier than the P10 (I liked that mask but nose didn’t tolerate it). I also have an F30 full face mask which has a similar under nose cushion but also face mask.

You could also try the Phillips Wisp mask or Resmed N20, which are nasal masks which fit over the nose.

So, these would be things to consider. You could check with your doc or DME to see if you could try these or other masks they might have.

Unfortunately, until you try sleeping through a night with a mask, it’s hard to know how well you’ll adapt.

[jaswilliams]

If the P10 is going too far into your nose that's what it sounds like use a larger pillow the pillow is supposed to just rest on the outside edge of your nose with no contact inside the nose

[Marillion]

How long have you actually had the P10? Are you using it daily?

Use Lanolin as often during the day as possible. What is happening is that you are getting micro tears in your skin from the P10 nasal pillows and your skin under your nose not being used to the contact. This is common when you first start using nasal pillows. What is not commonly known is that Neosporin is not actually that effective as an antibacterial agent. There is barely enough medication in there to make a difference. It can also have the side effect under lots of use to prevent healing. My advice is to just keep the area clean and use Lanolin during the day as often as possible. Eventually, your nares (skin under your nose) will adapt and "toughen up" so to speak so that you will not get any further sores from using the P10 daily. This has also been my own personal experience.

[Coffee Man]

I see the advice to power through soreness often given. However, if there is a blister I think it’s a bad idea to continue using the same mask.

You should probably let your sleep doctor know, and consider an alternative mask.

[MitchS]

I agree with jaswilliams and Marillion. When I first started using a nasal pillow mask, sores developed in both nostrils. The sores healed very quickly after I changed to a larger pillow and started using Lanolin. If you decide to use lanolin, be sure to get HPA Lanolin from the baby department of most large retailers. It is a paste used by nursing mothers. Apply a little to both nostrils where the cushions rest just before bedtime. It doesn’t take much.

[mesenteria]

I offer this only as a personal anecdote and practice, and am not suggesting or advising you to follow suit:

When I get sores on my scalp, or a bit of folliculitis, or what some might call a hot spot, something where the skin is compromised enough that bacterial activity is almost certain to be present or soon will be, I resort to the use of tea tree oil.  I would not use it next to, or on, mucosal membranes.  That means not near the eyes or inside the nostrils, nor inside the mouth.  !!!!

Tea tree oil has been surprisingly consistent and reliable in that type of application for me.  If I get tingling and itchy toes, something that is likely to happen during the warmer months and I have to use enclosing footwear all day for days, I wash and then apply the tea tree oil between the toes.  It might sting a few seconds, letting me know it has found some open skin, but that's the whole point of applying it...to get rid of whatever is breaking up my dermal layers there.  Other than that, it doesn't produce unwanted secondary effects.

So, if you have a hot spot OUTSIDE the nostril, even on the lowest rim, it might be something to consider if it's decidedly bacterial.  If what you are experiencing is mostly inside, or well inside the nostril, I think you have been provided with some good advice by the previous responders who share that experience.

[Fats Drywaller]

Any recommendations for a nasal mask for a woman with fairly small face and active sleeper? Thanks

I'll just bump this thread by highlighting that question, because maybe someone knows a good answer? I don't know, but then I suspect that masks are so subjective that maybe a definitive answer isn't available. Maybe you just have to try a few. Recommendations and reviews can be of some help, though.

I agree that it'd be best to give the blister time to heal without pestering it further with any nasal-pillows mask, even using a larger pillow size, so nasal masks are the way to go for now.

[terriergal]

The first nasal pillow mask  I tried was like that for me almost immediately. I wish I could remember what it was.   I switched to the air fit p10 and the structure was a bit different, softer material, and better fitting.  I also couldn’t use the women’s version it was too small and tight for my average head, also the pillows didn’t allow enough air through so I felt like I was suffocating.

[Fats Drywaller]

With any nasal-pillow mask, it's important to get all of the sizes of pillow/cushion that are included in the complete "fit pack", as it's usually called, because the proper size for any patient might be non-intuitive. This is yet another thing that DMEs often get wrong. (And then they compound the problem by not giving the patient all of the leftover parts from the mask kit, including the instructions and a sizing guide if there is one.) It depends on the size of the nostrils, not necessarily the size of the nose. Also, as you said, you don't want one that restricts the air flow too much, so you really have to try 'em all.

The headgear is sometimes available in different sizes also, but that part has to be bought separately. I had to do that for both a Dreamwear and a Wisp.

Eventually, one does get to one's destination with all of this tedious stuff, and the repeated mask tryouts come to an end. But I vaguely remember reading somewhere about a CPAP patient who, over some number of years, tried twenty-six masks because she was so difficult to fit, or to please, or something. To me, that seems, uh, rather excessive. I'd think that half a dozen should do it. (But ask me again in a couple of years.)

So far, I heart my Brevida.