Question about mouth breathing

[Jaylee]

This could all be solved if I could talk my Dad in to buying a card reader for his machine

At this exact moment, I do not have the info on my Dad's machine/mask. If it is needed, I will post it tomorrow. He is sleeping already, sorry! He uses a CPap with oxygen and a mask that fits only over his nose.

Basically I heard him snoring a few weeks ago, so I told him and he let the DME know. She brought him a chin strap. He wears it, but he was still snoring. He sent his data card to the DME and he called to ask about the results. She told him eveything was fine, etc, etc. She did not give him any actual data. Honestly I am not so sure I would know what to tell him to ask her specifically because I am so new to this myself.

How can it be okay for him to continue to snore though? He has asked me to check before going to bed, and each and every night when I walk by their room, I hear snoring. I turn the hall light on to make sure it isn't my Mom , and no, it is always him, even with the chin strap. Isn't that basically leaking therapy air and isn't that affecting his therapy? Any help is appreciated, and again, I apologize for not having complete info on the equipment for you all.

[harry33]

he shouldnt be snoring, he may need a full face mask, the only way to keep lips together is to tape them, get him to do this for a few nights and see if he feels better, double the tape back at both ends to form tear off strips for him to grab

the body is always looking for the easy way out and mouth breathing is a bit easier but stops all CPAP benefits, also gives a dry mouth

[kteague]

Jaylee, your dad is lucky to have you looking out for him. And you are right, losing air out of the mouth does compromise treatment. He may end up needing a full face mask if other endeavors aren't working.

As far as what to ask the DME who reads his data, I'm guessing they'll just give him an average for the time frame, as I doubt they'll go thru night by night, but he can ask them for a copy of the report. But at least ask what his Apnea Index and Hypopnea Index are and his Leak Rate. Keeping a copy in your home files would be a great tool to look at how his treatment is doing over time. Let us know how this pans out.
Kathy

[PAPalogical]

When you hear snoring, can you see if his mouth is open? Question is it mouth snoring or nose snoring - double check, as I can snore either way. Assuming it is mouth snoring (from the subject of the post), a chin strap should take care of it - your dad probably just needs to adjust the chin strap to be tight enough that when he opens his mouth, it'll close up again, but not "snap shut". Took me 3-4 tries to get it right, and I still have to tighten it every 4-6 weeks, and replace the chin strap every 6 months (gets to stretched out to hold well).

[montana user]

Snoring is one of the things we try and get rid of in the sleep lab. If I have all the apneas fixed, and still hear snoring, then I raise the pressure to stop the snoring. Make sure to let the DME know that the chin strap is not working. It could be his pressure is too low???

[rosiefrosie]

Snoring is one of the things we try and get rid of in the sleep lab. If I have all the apneas fixed, and still hear snoring, then I raise the pressure to stop the snoring. Make sure to let the DME know that the chin strap is not working. It could be his pressure is too low???

I agree. This was the 1st thing that came to my mind. You may need to have your pressure increased.

rosie