Leak issues, should I try a different mask before 30 day trial ends?

[Epark617]

Just came back from the DME with the Brevida. They were nice enough to still give me 7 days to try the mask and I can switch back to the P30i if the Brevida doesn't work out. But they reiterated not to worry about my leaks because they weren't mouth leaks, were positional and my AHI is under 5. Ironically, I know that the only reason I had 0% large leaks was because I used mouth tape last night. I didn't mention it to them because last time I spoke to them, they said they don't recommend mouth tape. They also didn't say anything about positional apneas ?... but my cervical collar came from amazon today so looking forward to using that tonight and maybe not need mouth tape!

[Deborah K.]

Lots of us use and like Bleep because it has no mask. Instead, it tapes to your race and doesn't move around. It has a learning curve to get it right, but it leaks far less than others.

[BuzzaJim]

It sounds like a similar situation to mine.  There was no problem getting my AHI below 5 and that’s the standard that insurance and the medical community use.  Problem was I wasn’t sleeping much better.  With time you’ll see that’s a shared gripe by just about everyone on this forum.  That’s why so many have found this place, to get better results than they’re getting from the DME or sleep doc.

The green smiley face of success is just a go/nogo indicator, much like the idiot light for oil pressure on a car.  They only come on after low oil pressure has damaged your car engine.  A pressure gauge on the dash would have shown pressure problems and avoided damage.  Oscar provides real leak metrics that are helpful in getting the best mask fit. Unfortunately, DMEs disavow Oscar.

It’d be nice if there was clearer guidance on what actually is a reasonable leak rate.  I saw a post last week from one of the advisors that they like to see the 95% leak rate below a certain number. I’m going to look for that thread.

[Epark617]

@Deborah K, yes I did see tree bleep system and would be very interested in investing in it in the future! I don't have insurance and so I'm a bit worried about the maintenance cost for the stickers. But I think once I'm in a rhythm and starting to see improvements, I'll look at upgrading.

@buzzajim, yes my DME kept emphasizing the green smiley and in my head I'm thinking that's bare minimum, not the bar to shoot for. I'd be very curious about that 95% threshold. I did see on one of lanky lefty's videos that he's much less concerned about a consistent flat leak vs many mountains and spikes. It makes me sad for the many cpap users who could be benefiting much more from their therapy but just rely on their DMEs and doctor to guide them.