Dreamwear full face mask setting for Airsense 10

[hegel]

Mike, I use a P30i mask, under the nose style mask that covers my mouth. I can have issues aligning the nasal holes with my nostrils. My dream is for someone to make this style of mask with 'prongs' that actually slightly enter the nostrils, like many nasal masks.

I always laugh at the word "idiopathic' because it seem to describe life in general. Sometimes I get results that fly in the face of common sense and my best thinking (umm so called...). I sometimes think I have cpap dialed in. I loved the F10 nasal mask for a few years, and then it just stopped working; who knows why? It always seems to be something new that throws my therapy a curve ball.

[MikeE3]

Your full face was similar but leak rates in each was a click or so higher. Still a non issue. I guess what threw off my supposition was the wrong numbers on your AHI had jumped to 8 ish, I think you'd misread or a typo thing. Whatever it was no harm no foul.

If your numbers were similar on leaks, you can safely choose either, where comfort wins.

No you did read an 8-ish AHI ... that was my 1st attempt using the medium sized cushion. Then I changed to the small size cushion and the AHI dropped to 2+ ... that's the OSCAR charts I published based on the lower 2+ AHI using the FFM. 

I've got a 30 day money back return on the FFM, I'll continue experimenting with it ... but my initial impression is ... it's going to be returned. If my leaks are OK with the pillows, even if I have some mouth breathing, for me it's a much more comfortable mask.

And if the AHI of 2+ doesn't come down by at least 1/2 (i'm usually under 1 with the pillow mask) with the FFM the Pillow mask is working better to give me a lower AHI.

I sure wish my sleep doctor gave a dang besides collecting money from my medicare. I seem to get better help here than from the doctor.

[MikeE3]

Thanks Mike.

I came here hoping to help you. You've helped me a lot!
Dave

Happy I could inadvertently help you. Makes me feel like I've finally contributed something 'here' instead of just asking questions for help.

[SarcasticDave94]

OK copy that, the 8 ish AHI could be a one off or might be that it would have trended that way, but if you've gotten better results with the cushion change, keep the better results and then after that keep that which is more comfortable.

[DaveL]

Happy I could inadvertently help you. Makes me feel like I've finally contributed something 'here' instead of just asking questions for help.

You help lots of people asking questions! Look how many people use this forum!

I was diagnosed about 35 years ago. I've been compliant ever since. I didn't feel that my treatment was working until I finally got rid of my last machine and took advice here to get an apap machine.That was end of August just over a year ago.

When I started using that new machine (S10 *for her*) it took a while to set it up so that I'm getting good results.

My regret is that I don't know enough. I have trouble interpreting my OSCAR results. I'm getting better. I've had good coaching. But I'm a slow learner.


I was a ski instructor for 35 years. I taught over 5,000 people how to ski. Just a part time job. I really care here, and want to help.

So watch these people work with you.  Know that results a while.  After all, I was always sleep deprived until I got the new machine dialled in.

They'll dial in your machine and then watch you go!

My thought.  If I have to wear all this crap it better work.

[hegel]

Yes to what DaveL said. Sarcastic Dave and others have helped me. And Sarcasticdave is right about our needing to establish a trend line over several, or many nights before we can really pin down results from any changes that we make.

Sarcastic and others aren't jsut dealing in theory. There's countless hours parsing real world results from a lot of people posting and making changes to their settings, and also their own experience, going into their advice. (sorry, run on sentence there.)

[MikeE3]

OK copy that, the 8 ish AHI could be a one off or might be that it would have trended that way, but if you've gotten better results with the cushion change, keep the better results and then after that keep that which is more comfortable.

If you mean FFM medium or small cushion I get it.

But if you mean FFM vs Pillow mask, the decision is more complicated than which is more comfortable. That's easy the Pillow mask is more comfortable. But when the same machine says my AHI is .8 with the pillow mask and 2 with the FFM which is right?

For 3+ years I've been thinking my AHI was 1 or less ... could that have been false all this time?

Last night was night #2 with the small FFM mask. OSCAR reported an AHI of 1.98 which was consistent with night #1 at 2.16. I still have the Airsense Mask Type set to Full Face. Although I did try readjusting the fit.

I did a bad job readjusting the fit. I had mask marks across my cheeks for 2 hours after I took the mask off. Cardinal sin - this certainly indicated I had it much too tight. So I readjusted again today and will see how it goes tonight.

My two observations.

1. My pressure is still hitting the max setting at time of 16. That never happened in 3 1/2 years with the pillow mask.
2. The water tank was almost completely empty. Typically I was only using 1/3 of the tank.

[hegel]

I believe I tend to hit higher pressure with a FFM than with nasal pillows. I've always assumed this was relative. A FFM has a higher volume of mask space to fill. Perhaps when it needs to address an event and raises pressure, it takes more air to respond...? In other words, the higher pressure in the face mask includes filling the mask. And so the higher reading reflects that. I don't know if this is true!

i6 isn't bad. How often/long are you in this range?

[MikeE3]

i6 isn't bad. How often/long are you in this range?

One period of 33 minutes and at the same time my leak rate was climbing from 12 to 20 and my flow rate was spiking from .14 to .87 (up and down, up and down during that time. No clue how to interpret that information. Beyond my pay grade :-)

I was actually thinking on changing my max pressure from 16 to 20 so the graph doesn't just flat line at 16 and I can actually see how high it goes. But I want at least 3 nights with just the mask change before doing any other tinkering.

[cberistain]

I'm a new user switched from nasal pillow mask to resmed airfit F30i ... airsense 11 set at 4 min 16 max.. at around 11, the mask would lift off and create large leaks .. I cut  the  max pressure to 10 and the max leaks went to a very low level .. as all the parameters that oscar displays.