dry mouth even with mouth taped shut

[merhaba12]

Thank you! I will keep you posted.

Zonk - For some crazy reason when I tried lowering my bottom pressure, my AHI's went up dramatically. My AHI's were around 15. It is weird, but when I had it set to 6-18cm, my pressure never went up past 10. Obviously, I needed more pressure. My AHI's went below 5 for the first time after I set it at CPAP 14cm. At 13-15, 95% of the night I am at 14.5 and my AHI's are below 5. At my Split-Night Sleep Study, my pressure was titrated to 14cm.

[PaulaO2]

Actually, some conditions that cause dry mouth don't appear during the day because at some point in 8hrs, you would have drank something and eaten something. Whereas at night, you don't.

How often are you making changes to the humidifier? You may not notice a difference after just one night.

Mouth breathing at night is totally different than day. At night, you are relaxed and, for many people, their jaw drops, their mouth opens, and they breathe through their mouth. This isn't something just for CPAP users.

Your machine is data capable. Have you looked to see what the leak rate is? (can't remember if you said you did or not) If your leak rate is higher than it should be, then yes, air is escaping from somewhere it's not supposed to.

You want the chin strap to be tight enough that, sitting up and relaxed, your jaw does not drop. But you don't want it so tight you can't open your mouth at all.

Whatever you try, give it more than one night. Try each change for at least a week.

[merhaba12]

I think I'll try setting the humidifier on 4 for a week to see if the higher setting helps (unless you think that is too high).

I looked at the data and for large leak my 7 day average is 4%. This doesn't surprise me because I have been trying the nasal pillows and that's where I have the most leaks. I am back to using the nasal mask.

My large leak 30 day average is 2%.

I am a back sleeper, so it is likely my mouth is dropping open while I am sleeping. I'll go back to using the chinstrap for a week to see if it helps. At least now I know not to tighten it too much.

[PaulaO2]

It's never ending joy, is it not?

I have no clue about leaks. Usually folks spout of numbers like 30mL or something. Percentages I know nothing about.

[zonk]

Thank you! I will keep you posted.

Zonk - For some crazy reason when I tried lowering my bottom pressure, my AHI's went up dramatically. My AHI's were around 15. It is weird, but when I had it set to 6-18cm, my pressure never went up past 10. Obviously, I needed more pressure. My AHI's went below 5 for the first time after I set it at CPAP 14cm. At 13-15, 95% of the night I am at 14.5 and my AHI's are below 5. At my Split-Night Sleep Study, my pressure was titrated to 14cm.

IMO lower pressure means less side effects so if the machine never went pass 10 than I don,t want to be on any higher pressure. Few things can affect the numbers like sleeping position whether sleeping on the back or on the side and the fact of the matter that the machine don,t know if you,re asleep so it can score an apnea while you,re awake. Numbers are the last piece of the jigsaw so I would concentrate on sleep quality, getting the mask right, leaks under control and eventually AHI numbers would get sorted out.
What I,m trying to say "how you feel" is far more important than numbers and the sign of good therapy is when you wake up in the morning feeling refreshed and well rested but its going to take some time ...maybe weeks or even months.

[Sleepster]

When I tried the nasal pillows I had huge leaks. I can't seem to get a tight enough seal without discomfort to my nostrils.

Not all nasal pillows are the same, so you might have better luck with a different type. Also, HPA Lanolin cream is an excellent salve to use in your nostrils to help getter a better seal. It's marketed as a salve for nursing mothers and can be found in most drug stores.

[TomR1]

I finally had to resort to a full face mask. I tried chin straps, setting the humidity and I even modified a scuba/snorkel mouthpiece to plug the opening and get an airtight mouthpiece.

My latest attempt is to get my dentist to try to modify one of these new custom fitted jaw positioner so that there is not an air opening. This hasn't happened yet.

Still, the air pressure blows the mask off my face if it gets too high. I even set the Resmed to reduce 3 cm on exhale. I will probably drop the max prsure next

[merhaba12]

I know it's early to give you an update on my sleep. I just wanted to add that I went to the DME today to get a NEW machine because they had given me was USED. They gave me the newer PR 560 instead. The RT set the pressures at 8-16. I guess I'll leave it there for a few days to see if at that setting my AHI's are still below 5.

I told the RT about my issue with extremely dry mouth all night long, despite the fact that I am using a chin strap and setting the humidifier at "4." He gave me a Mirage Liberty Hybrid mask. We'll see if it helps.

[jimco1]

I have always had dry lips while sleeping but since using my machine I have developed dry mouth. I do wake up some times feeling like my mouth is full of air when I open my mouth I get a rush of air out. But I have noticed that the dry mouth comes now whenever I sleep with or without the machine, figured that I changed the way I breathe I think I used to use my mouth more and now I think I breathe through my nose 98% of the time. I have tried chin straps and full face masks to no help with this.

[Sleepster]

I have always had dry lips while sleeping but since using my machine I have developed dry mouth.

Check your leak rate. If your unintentional leak is very low, and the graph doesn't show any large spikes, then this issue is not affecting your therapy.