Not enough humidity, cough with new hose?

[happyd]

Appreciate any advice here:

I got a new heated hose (to replace the old one that was leaking) two weeks ago, but since then, I have been coughing within 2 hours of using my CPAP machine. This makes no sense to my CPAP specialist and me. The only thing I changed was the leaky hose. Do you have any suggestions of things to test?

Machine: Phillips respironics System One
Hose: Heated
Filter: Black, just got new one a week ago
Mask: Amara View
Pillow: foam pillow which I've personally cut into a shape to fit my face and mask
Mouth breather
Side sleeper

Settings:
Pressure: 4-6 (every night, it's at 6)
Tube temperature: 1 (range is 0-5, with 5 at maximum heat)
Humidity Level: 3 (but same issue whether its at 1 or 2 as well)

The weather in my area (Washington, DC) has also changed to be less humid/hot in the past two weeks. I have the air conditioning on each night, with the temperature at 76 or 78 degrees. My room is dry.

Should I try not having the AC on? or using a humidifier for the room?
The therapist suggested that I should use a proper full face mask, but I wasn't able to use those earlier so I'm not keen to go back to them.

Thank you!

[Pugsy]

Do you take any medications for any reason?
If so, has anything changed with your meds? Dosage? Time of dose? Meds change?

Also...is the water being used with the current setting of 3 for humidity? With the ambient humidity being drier it should use more water.

[Julie]

A/C will dry things out when it's on, and if your local climate's drier than usual (tho' I imagine that's changed with Hermine!) then turn on your humidifier, but maybe not heat the hose which will dry things more too. You have to play with settings and A/C, etc. for yourself to find what works 'when', as climates change throughout the year, and not depend on someone else who may be in a different climate to advise. I'm also on the east coast, don't use A/C tho' and don't use the humidifier (or heated hose) as I don't feel the need, tho' may use the hum. in winter when central htg dries things out.

[SewTired]

Try washing the hose. I'm thinking maybe they didn't sufficiently remove the mold release.

[happyd]

Hi everyone,

Thanks so much for your suggestions and comments. All were very helpful and made me reevaluate what else might have changed in addition to the hose and the weather. I did the following:
1 rewashed the hose
2 I turned off the heated hose completely (but kept the AC on for my roommate)
3 re: meds, I am using an inhaler, and I did switch the time. I went back to the prior time slot (which was using my inhaler right before bed)
4 for the humidifier, it was hard to tell if the water was being used as I only kept the mask on for two hours, but I did see condensation. To be safe, I filled the container to the Full mark (whereas before I only used a much smaller amount)
5 additionally, I had also put my hose on a hook above the bed as many other CPAP users had recommended. I took it down.

And, drum roll please, last night, I was successfully able to use my mask again! I feel so much better today.

Thank you for your advice. Hope you have a great Tuesday!

[Janknitz]

I have cough variant asthma, and when I have asthmatic bronchitis, about the only time I don't cough is when I use my machine.

But I'm in the throes of a bout of bronchitis now, and had a lot of coughing in the middle of the night last night despite CPAP. Had to wake up enough to use the inhaler, and then wait a few more minutes for it to take effect. But I eventually got back to sleep. It wasn't the CPAP's fault at all, it was the bronchitis. Looking forward to getting over this!

One think I'm loving about the Airsense autoset is that there is a cover on the filter. On the old PRS1, coughs would pop out the filter. Whomever thought of that design???

[happyd]

Unfortunately, I'm back again....but with a little cough and a LOT of mouth dryness when sleeping even for 1-2 hours.

I have an Amara View and a ResMed Quattro Air FFM.

I did some tests/research and here's what I found:
- I confirmed that the water in the humidifier is being used.
- I wore the mask during the day for an hour, and did fewer issues (but not completely eliminated). I can feel that the air that is blowing through the mask is extremely dry.
- Spoke to a friend who had a similar issue, who said her mask was leaking when she was sleeping (so she thought that her mask was moving during her sleep).Once she got a new mask (a different one) and no longer had issues.

I'm planning to call the doctor on Monday, but any other ideas - could the machine be broken? I can't tell where the humidity would be going if not in the hose to my mouth.

Thanks!

[Pugsy]

Unfortunately even with the humidifier cranking out maximum humidity it may not be able to eliminate dry mouth from mouth breathing even with a full face mask because it was originally designed to hydrate the nasal cavity which is much smaller than the oral cavity (the mouth).
This forum has many discussions about dry mouth and full face mask users and the things they do to try to combat the dry mouth issues.
Some people will just get a dry mouth easier than other people. Maybe it is related to medications or maybe it is just related to bad luck.

[JDS74]

Sometimes folks who breathe through their mouths need more humidity longer than others.
If you increase the humidity level and that works for part of the night but the humidifier is empty in the morning and you wake with a dry mouth, then a different solution may be required.

To get the humidity level to where I need it to be and to have the water last through the night, I need about twice as much water as the average CPAP humidifier contains. If you want to explore my option, drop me a note.

[chunkyfrog]

When I wake, my eyes and mouth are dry.
My solution is simple. Artificial tears and a container of drinking water.
A straw can be slipped under a full face cushion if necessary, and a good swish floods the desert.
Add a few good gulps and I'm good to either get up or roll over and continue sleeping.