Full face mask fitting problems

Rolyn · Post by **Rolyn** » Thu Dec 02, 2004 10:25 pm

I am new to CPAP and am struggling to get a full-face mask to fit without leaking. I am a small person 5"1", 105 pounds with a very narrow lower face, and a mouth breather. I tried a ResMed Ultra Mirage full face, small, and had many leaks. When I got a good seal, the mask was too tight across my nose and left me with a red, throbbing red area that took 4 days to heal. My face is very narrow in the lip area and the mask leaked there any time I moved my chin or turned on my side. I tried the Respironics ComfortFul Mask, small, with the same results.

I need advice on getting a good fit without damaging my skin.

Thanks

Suserbec · Post by **Suserbec** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 5:31 am

Hi,
I, too, am anxious to read replies on this one. I have the same problem. I have a very small chin and my FF mask leaks at the bottom whenever I move or even slightly move my mouth. I have to keep it on tight to keep from leaking and then I have marks on my face every morning and a very sore nose bridge.
I'll be watching for input on this one. Thanks for posting the question.

wading thru the muck! · Post by **wading thru the muck!** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 6:57 am

My guess is because masks (especialy full face) are sized for the average face that if you have a narrow or small face you are going to have no luck with all full face masks.

How about attacking the mouth leak problem another way?

You want to try some of the mouth closure schemes devised by some of the forum members. I use one devised by rested gal. I use a silcone scar therapy patch to seal my lips shut over night. Rested gal also wraps an ace bandage over her's to assist in the closure. I've found the adhesive on the ones I use (curad) keeps the patch on all night without any help. It comes off in the morning just fine and I can reuse the same patch for several days.

One other potential hope might be if ResMed does release the rumored Activa Full face mask, although the nasal version of this mask is said by many to be rather large. Based on both your comments it would seem to be worth them considering adding a narrow size in addition to the shallow and standard they now offer.

Rolyn · Post by **Rolyn** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 7:46 am

I am not familiar with this product. Where can it be purchased?

Can I can use this product over the bridge of my nose to protect it from the pressure? I have more than an indention that fades during the day. It was red, very tender and throbbing for 2 days and is now on the 5th day and still red, sore and peeling.

wading thru the muck! · Post by **wading thru the muck!** » Fri Dec 03, 2004 8:21 am

Hi Rolyn,

It might work for that. I purchased mine at a Target store but my guess is it would be available at any large Pharmacy. I've also seen this type product on eBay. Search for Scar therapy. A couple of different manufacturers are marketing this type product to reduce the appearance of scars.

Sounds like you might have a good idea...Good luck!

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sat Dec 04, 2004 10:45 pm

There is also a product like the breath easy nasal strips specifically to hold one's mouth shut. I believe they are called chin ups. I used them several years ago and had fair success in keeping my mouth shut while using my cpap. Sorry I do not know the web site address but am sure a browser could find it for you.

rested gal · Post by **rested gal** » Sat Dec 04, 2004 11:00 pm

Rolyn and Suserbec, unfortunately you may not be able to find a full face mask that will fit you well if your face is small or very narrow. The mask manufacturers probably have men's faces in mind when they design masks.

If you have to continue strapping a mask on tightly, you might try moleskin (probably in the "foot care" products aisle of pharmacies) to pad areas that the mask presses on the most. Or perhaps some little dot size bandaids.

Rolyn · Post by **Rolyn** » Mon Dec 06, 2004 9:34 am

Thanks for the suggestions on using the full face mask. This is a great site for getting educated on cpap. I knew NOTHING about this and have gotten much more information from you than from the folks locally. I'm going to refer the RT that supplies my equipment here.

I tried the Curad Scar Reduction strips and they work effectively to keep my mouth closed at night and have reduced the dry mouth somewhat. I've used them for 2 nights and the only problem has been the strong adhesive and dry lips after removing. Tonight I'll try disarming the adhesive with a small strip of plastic film just in the area that covers my lips.

Now I would like to try a nasal mask and would like advice on which one might work best for me. Are the nasal masks likely to have the same pressure on the nasal bridge?

Again, thanks for all the information. I'm learning so much!

deadtom · Post by **deadtom** » Mon Dec 06, 2004 10:21 am

I have the same problem, but I am tall (6'3"0 227 lbs) and have a larger face but the Respironics Full Face seems to leak when I move my mouth.

Would the ResMEd mask work better?

rested gal · Post by **rested gal** » Mon Dec 06, 2004 1:30 pm

Tom, while different masks suit different people, I get a much better seal (and more comfortably) on my face with RESmed's masks. The one exception for me being the RESmed Vista - that one was leaky up around my eyes...it hit the discard drawer pretty fast. I don't have any connection with any company. I do like the Respironics REMstar autopap I have. But I've found that any Respironics mask I've ever tried would either dig into my face at some point or another, or be more apt to spring leaks, compared to the RESmed masks I use. But maybe that's just me. Might be just the opposite for another person.

Full face mask fitting problems

Full face mask fitting problems

Silicone Scar Reduction Sheet (curad)

Nasal Masks for a small face