Mask sizes and equivalents

[morejs]

I'm new to this forum and pretty new to CPAPk, started using a CPAP mask and machine the first of this year (CPAP+(set at 16) , humidfier,and a flexfit 431 mask). The mask came with 3 sizes of cushion and the one that seemed to fit at the time I was with the DME was the medium. It tore within a couple of weeks and resisted all efforts to patch it. I'm now using the large which frankly works better than the medium ever did, although I'm still unable to wear it for more than two or three hours. After that it starts to leak, and also becomes very irritating around the bridge of the nose.

I'm looking for alternative masks, and everything I've read leads me to the activa, and that brings me to my problem and questions. After doing the measurements on the size finding section here at CPAP.com I get the message that the activa isn't my best choice, along with recommendations for several other preusmably better options.

My question is, have others used these sizing recommendations and have they been pretty accurate? I figure I'll wind up trying a number of masks, and the nasal pillows as well, but I'd like to be sure I'm at least starting out with the right size.

[Snoredog]

the Activa is very good at sealing, but comes at a cost, the Activa is noisy (compared to others) and is much bigger and more bulky than others. By comparison, the UltraMirage II nasal mask does just as good a job at sealing with a much lighter payload, doesn't have the stiff leader hose, is quieter and seals just as good.

As for the part of the cushion that contacts your face, they are nearly identical. What you have to be careful about is sleep labs sizing you, they like to size you just to get you through your sleep study, in most cases they size too small, they do that because it is easier to seal leaks on a mask that is too small vs. one that is too large.

[snorzalot]

My FP 431 FF has a tear near the bridge on the nose in the silicon after only 10 days. I only received the medium (think I need large) from my sleep lab during the study, but I like anyway.

If you want to determine a good sizing chart, visit (with a friend)
https://www.cpap.com/cpap-mask-sizing.php

This will get you started on the right track!

Good luck!

[morejs]

The link is to exactly the sizing method I was referring to with my question. After entering the measurements my wife and came up with it informed me the activa was not for me. Instead it recommended a seven other options ranging from comfort curve to the mirage vista deep to the Ultra mirage full face mask. In fact it suggested the mask I already have, which I find not at all satisfactory. What concerned me is that several of the recommended masks also have a number of others listed as equivalents, and I'm wondering why they didn't show up too. It they are equivalent, won't they do the job just as well?

Between what i've read while "lurking" on this forum, and a couple of others as well, I've about concluded that mask selection is similar to the process one goes through picking a set of golf clubs. That is, whatever works for you is the one you take, fully recognizing that tomorrow something else may work better.

[rested gal]

After entering the measurements my wife and came up with it informed me the activa was not for me. Instead it recommended a seven other options ranging from comfort curve to the mirage vista deep to the Ultra mirage full face mask. In fact it suggested the mask I already have, which I find not at all satisfactory.

morejs, I have a feeling that the "sizing guide" is one of those ideas that looked good on paper, but....

Any guide that would recommend the Comfort Curve and the Vista is making some rather leaky recommendations, imho. A lot of masks can be measured to "fit" the face when a person is sitting up and not moving. It's a whole other ballgame when people are trying to sleep in a mask.

The Activa is well worth trying, imho, regardless of what a sizing guide says. That mask has a unique cushion design that seals amazingly well on most people. It's a big favorite on many message boards with good reason.

[FL andy]

After entering the measurements my wife and came up with it informed me the activa was not for me. Instead it recommended a seven other options ranging from comfort curve to the mirage vista deep to the Ultra mirage full face mask. In fact it suggested the mask I already have, which I find not at all satisfactory.

morejs, I have a feeling that the "sizing guide" is one of those ideas that looked good on paper, but....

morejs,

I had the very same results with the sizing chart that you did.

I had been using the Activa for six months *before* I tried the sizing chart - and it told me the Activa was not the ideal mask for me. I loved that mask and am still using it, rotating occasionally with the Ultra Mirage full face.

Go ahead and try it, if you want.

Andy

[morejs]

I had a feeling that might be the case. I'll probably do just that.