Dry Mouth

Hello. Im having an issue with having such a dry mouth i have to peel my teeth off my cheeks. I have the S8 Elite II with the H4i. I also have a humidifier in the room, the temperature is usually around 74 (too warm for me ) And i have a Pad-a-cheek hose cover. I get rain out still in the mask. I have the H4i set to max and still get dry mouth several times a night and its bad enough to wake me up. And when i get up after 8 hours i still have quite a bit of water left. My leak rate averages to .16 a night.

I admit im a major mouth breather. I am using the Liberty mask and love it. Ive read that the Fisher and Paykel HC150 is a much better choice then most options out there. Ive tried to talk to the DME and they keep saying there isnt anything they can do.

I have a DR. apt this Friday morning and was going to ask for a new humidifier. Is there anything else i can try?

Mr. Smiley

Mr. Smiley wrote:Hello. Im having an issue with having such a dry mouth i have to peel my teeth off my cheeks. I have the S8 Elite II with the H4i. I also have a humidifier in the room, the temperature is usually around 74 (too warm for me ) And i have a Pad-a-cheek hose cover. I get rain out still in the mask. I have the H4i set to max and still get dry mouth several times a night and its bad enough to wake me up. And when i get up after 8 hours i still have quite a bit of water left. My leak rate averages to .16 a night.

I admit im a major mouth breather. I am using the Liberty mask and love it. Ive read that the Fisher and Paykel HC150 is a much better choice then most options out there. Ive tried to talk to the DME and they keep saying there isnt anything they can do.

I have a DR. apt this Friday morning and was going to ask for a new humidifier. Is there anything else i can try?

Mr. Smiley

Turn down the heat, turn down the humidity and do nightly nasal rinses to open up your nasal passages.

Too much humidity (and heat) can actually close up your nasal passages and contribute to mouth-breathing.

Also, if you have diabetes (T2), that can be a cause of dry mouth.


Den

I use a chinstrap with my Liberty mask because of dry mouth. It is the only thing that has helped me.

Without it I experience exactly what you describe.

I have tried many things including extra humidifier in the room.

When I ask my Doctor about it at my 10 week followup, she brought in a resp. tech. for an opinion on the issue. The tech tried to convince me that the air was blowing in my nose and out my mouth. This is a full face mask. I tried to explain why that was not what was happening. She couldn't grasp that the Liberty would work just like an Ultra or Quatro, because that was one of her solutions. The Tech didn't appreciate me laughing at her when she didn't get it ( I was actually very polite about it). She was VERY adamant that my problem was that the air was going in my nose and out my mouth even though the same pressure was on my mouth as my nose.

Anyway I figure I am on my own to sort my issues out since the advice from the doctor/tech were all uninformed guesses.

The Doctor didn't even look at the data on my machine to see how I was doing. At the end of the appointment I pulled out my laptop and showed her. Her response was "Wow that's a lot of good information. From that it looks like you might need more pressure. Come back in 6 months and we will see how you are doing."

I don't know if I will go back.

oops this reply turned int a rant .. sorry.

This is the chin strap I use: https://www.cpap.com/productpage/premiu ... hleak.html

Also, after starting to use the strap, I have dropped the humidity from full to about 2 tick marks (about one fifth of full) and no longer get rainout like i was at full.

The rainout was causing major leaks for me.

If you want an HC150 and can be a little bit patient you can get usually find a great deal on one on cpapauction.com and ebay. I got one that was like new with everything included for $53.00.

Dale

You might consider OralBalance from OralB. Its a moisturizer for you mouth. I found it helps but its not likely to be a complete solution for you.

The other approach is to take the measure that are discussed in these forums to keep your mouth closes. But using a FFM, you don't have to worry about the closure being 100% effective. They include chin straps, taping, and dental strips (glue).

I've also begun to suspect that with my liberty, I'm still leaking out of my mouth. I found that I can swing my lower jaw open creating a big leak between my chin and mask. The mask doesn't seem to secure against this adequately. Excessive humidity may encourage you to do this.

If your machine is capable, check for leaks during the night. I also found the mask is prone to being dislocated as well if I turn to much to either side.

I will try lowering the humidity level on my machine tonight and see what happens. And try the chin strap that i have right now (its the wide white Velcro deal they give you at the sleep center ) I appreciate all the help and suggestions. Ill let you know how it turns out in the morning.

Mr. Smiley

If you need more humidity, a heated hose is the way to add it without causing rainout.
O.

Well last night i tried turning the humidity down from 6 to 2. I didnt wake up till it was time to wake up, but my teeth were glued to my cheeks. But hey atleast i wasnt up 2 or 3 times. I will try a chin strap and see if that helps. I have an apt with my RT next week, and ill se what he can do for me. I may also ask about getting a heated hose as well. Or i may try the Lizzard hose heating ive read about on here.

Mr. Smiley