Nasal pillow vs nasal mask vs full mouth mask?

[Osiris357]

Is the room you sleep in cool or air conditioned Osiris?

Right now it’s about 19F here in the northeast of the US. I have a humidifier built in to my furnace. I’m Italian and have the stereotypical oily Italian skin. 2 hours after I wipe off my face with alcohol or witch hazel my face is greasy again. A full face mask that’s properly adjusted works great now. Tape no matter what I do will come up. I’ve tried every oily skin facial cleanser you can think of all the way up to the very expensive stuff. I end up with oil on my face in 2 hours. 

It’s ok now it took me a few but I got the F30 adjusted perfectly. No pressure on my nose and no leaks and most importantly is doesn’t slide around. It stays put. Zero leaks again last night with .5 AHI. Can’t ask for more than that

[mper6794]

Most people will not go with a FFM.  I have only used FFM’s,since 2001, so that is all I know.  I actually don’t like pressurized air blowing up my nose as tried a DreamWear mask for half a titration.

I know I am fortunate since I have always managed to get a FFM to seal.  I do wear a cervical collar and a side benefit is less mouth breathing.  My current mask is an F20 and it is by far the best I have used.

I have never taped my mouth so I can’t say how easily it is to be able to get air through my mouth in an emergency.  I’m sure there is no issue, but I’m not sure I could even sleep with tape strong enough to seal up under high pressure and rely only on air through my nose.  But a lot of people do.

If you don’t mouth breathe I would think pillows or a nasal mask would be preferred.

John

Hi, John,
using for a quite while 18 years is indeed a good experience! Would you please tell me about your max pressures?  what masks you went through ? and, also, have you ever felt the FFM deform your face somehow, in particular at lips and rignt below?

atb

[Big Guy]

I'm a mouth breather. I just can't get enough air via my nose. I had two in-lab sleep studies. They gave me an AirFit F20 mask to use the 2nd night. 

I've been using that ever since. I also have an AirFit F30 that I use from time to time. The F20 seems to do a pretty good job for me. I adapted to it rather quickly. 

I don't know, maybe I'm missing something by not using some sort of nasal pillows. 

[Gideon]

The right mask for you is simply the mask that works.  It doesn't matter if it is pillows, nasal, FFM, or something unique, if it works for you it is the right mask.

[Sleepster]

I don't know, maybe I'm missing something by not using some sort of nasal pillows. 

Nasal pillows can irritate the nose, and of course there's the ever-present possibility of mouth-leaking.

For me, switching to a FFM turned out to be the last tweak I needed to finally get good sleep.

[Zorki1c]

Started with pillows. I have tried nasal masks but not comfortable. I think if FFM was my only option I wouldn’t use CPAP. I don’t have problems with mouth breathing UNLESS I need to sleep sitting up in a recliner. Then I can’t keep my mouth shut.

[70sSanO]

Hi, John,
using for a quite while 18 years is indeed a good experience! Would you please tell me about your max pressures?  what masks you went through ? and, also, have you ever felt the FFM deform your face somehow, in particular at lips and rignt below?

atb

This might be OT from thread.  I started with a Mirage to Ultra to Quattro FX (couple nights with Quattro) to F20.  Never had any deforming around my lips.  Forehead supports did leave indents that lasted for years.  Except for F20, I used elastic straps to make my own headgear and cinched them pretty tight.

John

[DarciWantsToSleep]

It comes down to whatever works for you. I wore a nasal mask during my sleep study but since I am a side sleeper it kept blowing air in my face. I chose nasal pillows because they are the least intrusive. I recently bought a full face mask due to allergy congestion but I feel like I am suffocating ( I’m claustrophobic) and I keep taking it off at night. 

Whatever you pick, your DME should give you a 30 day trial. So you are not married to your mask type immediately. 

Best of luck!

[tedgreen]

I started with a FFM as I was a mouth breather and had nose congestion most of the time. It was good but difficult to sleep without leaks when moving, given the size/large area.

I then tried a pillows mask but didn't like it. Air flow was too "direct".

I am now using a Nasal mask, with some mouth taping. I have noticed I am breathing a lot more through my nose now during the day, and congestion has mainly stopped, so CPAP was a good conditioning tool.

[Plmnb]

I couldn't breathe with them due to small nasal passages... and easily inflamed soft tissue.

Exactly why EVERYONE is different. 

My nasal passages have been declared by my ENT as naturally very narrow, so I normally breathe through my mouth.  I must have the FFM or I get very very little air.  I can't use chin straps because my mouth so forcefully opens that the chin straps don't keep my mouth closed well at all.

(Edit Note: Diagnosed with Class III tongue).

When I started therapy in November I had the most sore gums I have ever had in my life.  My gums weren't in great shape to begin with and the FFM at first made them even worse.  Now that I have the CORRECT FFM for me, including the foam seal, my gums feel great.

So anyone reading this......take into consideration what is said here, but try everything possible at least once if you are having mask difficulty.

Respectfully,
Plmnb