Skin Irritation from Masks

[Granny7]

Thanks to all who have responded with advice I tried REMzzs liners with my Vitera mask. They didn't work very well. I still had leaks and irritation at the bridge of my nose. Airtouch F20 seemed to work OK at first but leaked a lot when my pressure  increased. Adjusting the straps to eliminate the leaks resulted in painful red marks. I will try  some of the other recommendations. Dave, I looked at the padacheeek liners and spoke with them on the phone. They attach to the mask and do not need to removed when the mask is. They claim they last for months. They are polyester, not cotton like the REMzzzs which have to be replaced daily at approximately $1 each.

[SarcasticDave94]

Hope you find success with something to address this.

[Granny7]

In the end, what worked for me (and your miles may vary) was the F20 AirTouch instead of the F20 AirFit. The soft foam against my face meant no rubbing, no red spots, no irritation from the silicone, and best of all, much less pressure on my nose because it sealed far better. I also put a piece of a hydrocolloid dressing (something like Duoderm ultra thin or Cutiderm) cut into a T or Arrow shape, over the bridge of my nose with the longer part up between my eyes. That seems to be enough to stop the pressure, along with making sure that I leave the upper straps as loose as I can manage. If it DOES get sore, then I swap over for a few days to use a pillows mask (P10 or P30i) instead and deal with the hassle of straps and taping and whatnot to allow the skin to rest and heal up before it gets really sore. That said, touch wood, I've been good now for several months.

I'm a new APAP user and am getting severe irritation at the bridge of my nose from my Vitera full face mask. When it gets too bad I switch to the Resmed F30i which causes irritation at one side of my nose. I tried the Airtouch F20 but it did not work well for me. I would appreciate more information on the hydrocolloid dressing you use. All I have found on Amazon are large drssings (e.g. 4"x4") that appear to have adhesive around the edges. It's not clear if they can be cut into smaller strips that will adhere to skin. Here is the link to what I found  https://www.amazon.com/Dimora-Hydrocollo...216&sr=8-3

Are you using something like this or a completely different product? I need to find a solution as I'm not able to tolerate either mask for a full night.

Thanks

[Ratchick]

The one you linked looks like it should work, yes. If you search on Amazon.com, they have some Convatec Duoderm extra thin products. Also, try "Hydrocolloid Bandage EalionMed" - they are a little cheaper than the Duoderm and have the same sort of design.

These are adhesive all over, not just at the edges, with a special gel matrix that helps with healing. You want to avoid anything that looks like basically a giant bandaid with a dressing pad in the centre and standard adhesive dressing on the edges. The hydrocolloid is perfect for helping open wounds to heal.

Shape-wise, it depends on your nose and face, but I use two options. On the bigger patches, I sometimes just measure out T shapes where across the top bar is the same length as along the vertical bar (around 4 cm/1.5 in), and both bars are around 1 cm or 3/8 in wide. Otherwise, on the smaller (7.5x7.5 cm/ 3x3 in) patches, I do something different, but it's probably easier if I show you a drawing.

   

Basically, you want to cut off each corner with a strip to go up between your eyes/eyebrows. I use the left over squares for any other sore patches that need some time to heal. I use these full time, even without any soreness, and for me, that helps prevent the soreness getting started. Then, like you, if I do get sore, I switch to a different mask until my nose is healed. 

Remember, if you have a red mark that doesn't go away after a relatively short time (like a couple of hours max) then that may very well be a stage 1 pressure sore - everyone thinks of the kind of horrific wounds that people get when they're neglected or bedbound etc, but the first stage is just visible redness that doesn't blanch or fade after a short time, and tenderness. So now, the moment I get any soreness, I give my skin a break and swap masks. It's really not great to wait until it's blistered or broken the skin, if you can avoid that.

Good luck! Hopefully, this will help your skin heal up and protect in future.

[Granny7]

Thanks   If I understand correctly You cut the large square into quarters and then cut out the white areas such that you have four pieces looking roughly like the attached photo.
 
Am I correct?

I think I already have a stage 1 pressure sore at one side of my nose from the F30i but the sore on the bridge of my nose has not yet healed. Between my husband and I (He’s been on CPAP for over 10 years and uses the silicone F20) we have a pretty good collection of masks but I don’t think there is one that doesn’t contact the already irritated spots. He does have a complete set of P10 pillows but I know if I use any type of nasal mask I will just blow air out through my mouth. I may have to just quit using the machine for a few days until one of the areas heals. In the meantime I will put in an amazon order.
I haven’t considered mouth taping and using the pillows. I’m concerned that my sensitive skin will react to the tape and I will have another painful area. You mentioned taping. What tape works well for you?

[Granny7]

Thanks   If I understand correctly You cut the large square into quarters and then cut out the white areas such that you have four pieces looking roughly like the attached photo.
 
Am I correct?

I think I already have a stage 1 pressure sore at one side of my nose from the F30i but the sore on the bridge of my nose has not yet healed. Between my husband and I (He’s been on CPAP for over 10 years and uses the silicone F20) we have a pretty good collection of masks but I don’t think there is one that doesn’t contact the already irritated spots. He does have a complete set of P10 pillows but I know if I use any type of nasal mask I will just blow air out through my mouth. I may have to just quit using the machine for a few days until one of the areas heals. In the meantime I will put in an amazon order.
I haven’t considered mouth taping and using the pillows. I’m concerned that my sensitive skin will react to the tape and I will have another painful area. You mentioned taping. What tape works well for you?

[SarcasticDave94]

Take a look at the ResMed F30i a hybrid full face. The top section is a nasal cradle. The supposed to be a hybrid coming soon from Fisher and Paykel also, called the Evora Full. I've messaged F&P about the availability as I'm interested in this one myself.

Here's some photos of the F&P Evora Full.

[Ratchick]

I do tape my mouth yes - Personally, I use a clear tape called Transpore, but there's a whole thread about what tapes to use, how to tape, etc. Someone even used denture strips between the lips to help seal them too! I may try that, one day. LOL

If the skin is broken, then yes, you really need to keep all the pressure off until it's fully healed. Pillows and taping worked for me. As for not using the machine, that's going to depend exactly how bad your apnea is and how you feel when off CPAP but if you can use pillows without an issue, then give that a try. You might find you actually like it more than you think you will. I know for sure I was pleasantly surprised. My go-to is the P30i but the P10 also works for me too. I was really concerned about putting adhesive tape onto my face, knowing how badly my skin reacts elsewhere (think looking like 2nd degree burns with huge blisters within half an hour of putting it on). Thankfully, for me at least, the Transpore is strong enough to hold and comes off without irritating me (especially if you use your tongue to gently work it off your lips rather than just yanking it off.

What I normally do when I cut the dressing for my nose is, I start cutting as if I am going to cut the corner off, but then I stop to leave it uncut where the nose strip that goes into the middle starts. Otherwise, cut it out in whatever way works for you, as long as you end up with your four sort-of rounded T-shapes. If you end up buying the bigger 4-inch square ones, though, a standard T shape will probably be better. You'll soon figure out what best works for you. I sometimes round the corners on the horizontal strip so that they don't get too close to my tear ducts, but if you bother looking in a mirror, you will miss them anyway!

[SarcasticDave94]

By the way, a Fisher and Paykel representative Rebecca, a
Quality & Regulatory Specialist in California emailed me on the inquiry about the Evora Full to say they aren't yet ready for US release. There may be a news release about this sometime in the near future though.

[Little Olive]

Mask woes are getting me down.  I'm  starting to get itch from the air touch memory foam stuff.  It is soft, but at the same time it's  also weirdly  rough in texture on my facial skin.  It's kinda prickly and sharp and l hate it.   The only place it helps me is on the bridge of my nose, which was really red using the silicone variety.

It doesn't  help that lm trapped between small and medium sizes.  The medium is too long and bumps up under my eyes and comes right down my chin,    and the small size is a bit too close to the corners of my mouth.  The nasal didn't  work at all for me.  I don't  really like the resmed masks but lm stuck with them for now.