Teeth/gums feel weird in the AM

[HockeyGoon]

I'm using a philips dreamwear full mask.  When I wake up in the morning, my teeth/gums feel strange.  It's almost like I had a teeth cleaning at the dentist.  Feeling persists for several hours.  

Is this common, or should I think about adjusting mask straps?

[timpani]

I've never had that experience, but maybe try a mouth guard.

[Kuutar]

I experienced that weird feeling in the gums and teeth when I was using the recalled DS1 and the same mask as you. At that time I was at a constant pressure level of 6 with no exhale pressure relief. After discontinuing using the DS1 after some time the gums returned back to normal, and also the severe bloating from aerophagia went away. After stopping using the DS1 and starting to read up on apnea related things more deeply I put the two and two together and realized both the gum issue and the bloating were from the DS1 and not optimized pressure levels.

I have now been using the replacement DS2 for a few days using the same mask and same pressure but with exhale pressure relief. So far no gum issues nor aerophagia.

My theory is that there was nowhere for the excess air to go and as it was bursting out of the seams including the mouth it impacted the gums (gas ratios?).

[Kuutar]

About potential tooth movement with positive airway pressure, came across this before when looking into potential side effects rarely/never discussed: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5886451/

[Hydrangea]

Some masks that I've used put pressure on the areas of my mouth/gums/teeth/jaw, and then I wake up with aches & pains there. That is a factor I consider when choosing my mask, because I prefer not to experience that.

[SevereApnea]

Good observation: another one of those interesting effects of CPAP that is highly individual and personal and can be very real.

Excellent article above.

When I used a nasal pillow I needed to deal with the mouth leaks by taping my mouth and using "alice bands" over my lips. This controlled the mouth leaks. These are effectively wide elasticed bands that place backward pressure on your lips to limit the leaks but also put pressure on the front teeth. After a few months my teeth felt different, tender, *imagines* are they getting loose? why do they hurt when I chew food, mainly the front teeth? Switched to an oronasal mask and the feeling went away.

That said, when I used the Dreamwear oronasal mask there was also cumulative pressure on the upper gums and teeth.
I switched to the ResMed oronasal mask and that feeling also went away. The ResMed cushion is much softer than the Dreamwear which has a harder plastic internal supporting strut and places more direct pressure on the front teeth and upper jaw.

(Orthodontic appliance change the alignment of your teeth by sustained tension and traction.)

There was a post on this on this forum I read about a year ago which suggested alternating masks on a regular basis may be a good idea.

You might try loosening the straps at the risk of causing some more mask leak, or try a different mask from time to time.

[archangle]

You might be clenching your jaw or grinding your teeth.  Or simply an effect of the mask pressing on your face.  You might try adjusting the straps.

I would say air leak, but that probably wouldn't dry out your mouth unless you are using a nasal mask.

[Kuutar]

This journal article was interesting around this topic. "The aetiology of facial pain related to CPAP use can be classified as pressure related or airflow related causes. Dental or periodontal pain for instance is mainly explained by direct pressure of the device on the gums. This is the case in 15 to 20% of patients treated with CPAP [5]. Abrasion and pain on the ridge of the nose is an issue in 13 to 37% of CPAP users [5]." https://www.hindawi.com/journals/criot/2014/837252/

Then there is the issue with dry mouth which is mentioned a lot. I've read in multiple places that it can cause the pH levels of the mouth to change, which then can lead to dental issues, e.g. issues with tooth enamel erosion, cavities, issues with fillings etc.