Pros and Cons of nasal pillows

[Janknitz]

When you get your nasal pillow mask, try this experiment. Hold the mask in your hand and turn on the machine. Now put the palm of your hand up to the openings of the pillows. You will see the pillows almost jump up to your hand and hold onto it. That's how these work--by fully inflating againt the outside of your nostril.

The pressure against your hand (and nose) is negligible. If you left the machine on "sucked" on to the fleshy part of your hand for hours, there would be no mark when you finally turn the machine off.

I simply cannot see how nasal pillows, properly worn, would make your nostrils bigger, and until I see a peer reviewed study specifically with CPAP nasal pillows and measurements of nostrils, I am not going to worry one bit about getting bigger nostrils from a pillow mask. Tissue expanders involve a lot more pressure for a lot more time, and they are expanding skin, not cartilage, so I don't find this analogous at all. I'd much rather worry about the poor sleep and therapy I get from other types of masks which threatens my overall health rather than minute details of my cosmetic appearance. My face looked a lot worse from lack of proper sleep than it ever will from the pressure of nasal pillows.

[robysue]

I simply cannot see how nasal pillows, properly worn, would make your nostrils bigger, and until I see a peer reviewed study specifically with CPAP nasal pillows and measurements of nostrils, I am not going to worry one bit about getting bigger nostrils from a pillow mask. Tissue expanders involve a lot more pressure for a lot more time, and they are expanding skin, not cartilage, so I don't find this analogous at all. I'd much rather worry about the poor sleep and therapy I get from other types of masks which threatens my overall health rather than minute details of my cosmetic appearance. My face looked a lot worse from lack of proper sleep than it ever will from the pressure of nasal pillows.

I'm inclined to agree with Janknitz here. I will also add that the tech at my DME who fitted me with the FX was a rare one who did understand how ths mask is supposed to work and she was adamant about making sure that the pillows were resting against my nostrils and not going up inside them. She also wanted to make sure I knew that I was NOT supposed to look or feel like I had a piggy nose from the cone part shoving too far into my nostrils. My guess is that her knowing how to fit this mask is part of why I've had such good luck with this mask right from the start.

[helpful1]

I've noticed that it is the air pressure, not the pillow itself, that expands the nostril tissue. Perhaps it's more of a problem for those of us who have more "fleshy" nostrils (vs nostrils that are narrower and with relatively more cartilage). I wear my Swift adjusted very lightly and with the pillows properly seated (not inside my nostrils), yet the moment my machine fires up, my nostrils balloon out (from the air pressure).

Tissue expanders don't use high pressure. If the pressure were too high, the circulation of the tissue would be cut off resulting in tissue necrosis. So they use moderate pressures over time to achieve the expansion. A peer-reviewed study would be nice, but I see with my own eyes what the pillows are doing when I turn my machine on. And I have no doubt that, over time, permanent change in the shape of my nose is likely to occur. I've also seen the change in a family member, who also has a fleshy nose type.

[kempo]

I use the FX with the climateline hose which delivers 80% humidity at all temperature settings so dry out is not a problem with me. I use lansinoh and wear the FX lightly against my nose. I also use the hose buddy suspension system. Works great. As a matter of fact it works so good I forget its on my face when I wake up.

[KimberlyM]

Thank you for responding. The ability to pivot the pillows does sound useful. I may have to try both LT and FX and see which fits best. I will definitely get the Lansinoh. Is it sold in stores?

Yes you can usually find it in drug stores and I am sure walmart. Look in the section for nursing mothers or you may have to ask the pharmacist where its located.

CVS drugstore also carries a generic that is about $2 cheaper than the brand name Lanisoh.

Its basically purified lanolin of food grade quality....hence the use to prevent and heal cracked skin. It really takes a very smal amount on the nares. So tube I can see lasting for years!!! It also works wonders on dry scaly foot skin! lol

Thanks, I am going to pick some up!

[KimberlyM]

KimberlyM, That is the idea. The purpose of the straps is to just hold the pillows so they lightly touch your nose. The internal part of the pillow inflates with pressure to hold everything in place and create a seal against the outer part of the pillow and your nose.

Mine is so loose that it actually moves around when I turn and I have to snuggle my face back into it a little after a turn. This sounds like much more effort than it really is. With the loose fit I don't have issues with the back strap moving up on my head.

Of course, there is the hose to deal with, but that is a separate issue. I just lay on them and crush and destroy them...

The way I was fitted was to first be sized up to see what size pillows would work best. Then I held the pillows softly up to my nose while it was hooked up to a xPAP machine blowing air. Then the straps were adjusted to simply snuggle things in place so I could let go. I was told to go home and disconnect the hose from the mask and wear it for awhile to get use to how it feels. Then to attach the short hose and make any final adjustments. I then settled down for a restful nights sleep...

Please note that as with all things in life your mileage may differ, but the goal is to let the mask seal and use the straps just to hold it in position. Tightening the straps to create a seal is not productive with the FX. When it works, it is excellent, but if your face or head prevents it from working, look elsewhere.

This sounds excellent! I would be thrilled to find something that doesn't have to have the straps be fairly tight to hold the seal. Now I am really hopeful Swift FX nasal pillows will work for me.

[KimberlyM]

Is there any difference between the Swift FX for her and the Swift FX, other than the colors that are aimed for women?

[helpful1]

The pillow sizes are XS-S-M for her, S-M-L for the regular FX.

[Janknitz]

The headgear of the FX for her is smaller than the regular FX. Not so for the LT, they are identical except for the sizes of pillows in the package.

And the FX for her has Barbie pink strap covers.

[robysue]

The headgear of the FX for her is smaller than the regular FX. Not so for the LT, they are identical except for the sizes of pillows in the package.

And the FX for her has Barbie pink strap covers.

Well, technically the top strap has a few more notches on it. But the only place you can make the silicone main strap "shorter" is across the top of the head; you can't adjust the distance between the corner where the backstrap comes in down to where the pillow is hooked onto the mask. The backstrap itself is a bit shorter as well as being either pink or light blue, as are the side straps.

[KimberlyM]

Thank you everyone! You are such a nice group of people. I was hesitant to try nasal pillows and now I can't wait!

[Muse-Inc]

...dry out their sinuses...What are your experiences?
During my first 22 months as a hosehead, I wore the OptiLife pillow mask, IMHO the mask with the smallest footprint on the face. I loved it and call it my beloved former mask...former 'cause I lost wt and turned into a mouth breather . During winter, I set my humidifier at the 3/4 max setting, during summer I set it at 1/3 max. Now, wearing my Hybrid FFM, I never set it above 1/3 max and in warm weather it's on passover -- I'm guessing that's because the airflow is directed 100% thru my nostrils and not just in front of my mouth & nose as it is with FFMs. My pressure used to be straight CPAP at 9; now with the Hybrid and an APAP, my pressure is currently 9.8--16.

...back and side sleeper, currently using a nasal mask...
I was exclusively a side sleeper with the OptiLife.

...narrow slotted type nostrils...
So do I and no pros recommend pillows for long slotted nares..nuts, I did well for a long time; it was the mask usedin my sleep study! They recommended I use the medium size but I prefer the larger airflow with the large size, tho both give me a good seal. The pillows must have the angle adjusted every time you re-assemble the mask following cleaning. This is a really simple mask: the pillows are one piece of silicon that slides onto a very small hard shell that has Velcro straps.

[idamtnboy]

"Keeping living tissues under tension causes new cells to form and the amount of tissue to increase. In some cases, this may be accomplished by the implantation of inflatable balloons under the skin. By far the most common method, the surgeon inserts the inflatable expander beneath the skin and periodically, over weeks or months, injects a saline solution to slowly stretch the overlaying skin. The growth of tissue is permanent, but will retract to some degree when the expander is removed."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tissue_expansion

I have been limiting my use of my Swift FX to every other day (switching to a nasal mask on the other days) but I'm not sure that will prevent the problem.

One of the advantages of getting older, say over 65, IMO, is it's too late to worry how other people view your physical appearance because it won't make any difference in your life anyway! If my nose gets reshaped so be it. Current comfort and well being are more important than future looks!!!! Why worry about how I might look at 90 when I might not live past 80??

[KimberlyM]

...dry out their sinuses...What are your experiences?
During my first 22 months as a hosehead, I wore the OptiLife pillow mask, IMHO the mask with the smallest footprint on the face. I loved it and call it my beloved former mask...former 'cause I lost wt and turned into a mouth breather . During winter, I set my humidifier at the 3/4 max setting, during summer I set it at 1/3 max. Now, wearing my Hybrid FFM, I never set it above 1/3 max and in warm weather it's on passover -- I'm guessing that's because the airflow is directed 100% thru my nostrils and not just in front of my mouth & nose as it is with FFMs. My pressure used to be straight CPAP at 9; now with the Hybrid and an APAP, my pressure is currently 9.8--16.

...back and side sleeper, currently using a nasal mask...
I was exclusively a side sleeper with the OptiLife.

...narrow slotted type nostrils...
So do I and no pros recommend pillows for long slotted nares..nuts, I did well for a long time; it was the mask usedin my sleep study! They recommended I use the medium size but I prefer the larger airflow with the large size, tho both give me a good seal. The pillows must have the angle adjusted every time you re-assemble the mask following cleaning. This is a really simple mask: the pillows are one piece of silicon that slides onto a very small hard shell that has Velcro straps.

Thanks, I will take a look at the OptiLIfe also. I hadn't heard of those before.

[SleepingUgly]

Can anyone speak to whether using nasal pillows causes the nostrils to permanently expand? I was just thinking of trying nasal pillows again, but if that's true, no thanks!