Does anywone have trouble with ComfortCurve mask?

SleepyHibiscus · Post by **SleepyHibiscus** » Tue Aug 01, 2006 10:28 pm

The ComfortCurve mask by Respironics looks comfortable, less invasive than standard nasal mask. Anyone have a negative experience with theirs... or a really good experience to share? Thanks

BetterBreathinBob · Post by **BetterBreathinBob** » Tue Aug 01, 2006 11:16 pm

Tried it a few nights-very comfortable but leaks alot. I would just wiggle my nose and it would leak. Try the Swift or Comfort L2

Good Luck
Bob

rested gal · Post by **rested gal** » Wed Aug 02, 2006 1:31 am

Comfort Curve didn't work for me.

Here's a link you can click to see more pros and cons about it:

LINKS to Comfort Curve nasal mask topics

Hawthorne · Post by **Hawthorne** » Wed Aug 02, 2006 4:38 am

Most people on this forum do not like the Comfort Curve. For me, it is the mask of choice right now. I have been wearing it exclusively since I bought it last October. I have not secrets that make it better except to put plumber's tape at the elbow connections on both sides. Without the tape, I get air escaping at those connections and quite noisily. Anyway, I like it a lot.

kurtchan · Post by **kurtchan** » Wed Aug 02, 2006 5:46 am

Sleepy,

I know that I'm definitely in the minority on this forum, but I LOVE my Comfort Curve and wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. I've tried the Activa, Vista and Swift as well, but found the CC to be the most comfortable and, as you said, the least invasive of the four.

Many here have complained about leaks with the CC, but I have found that, with a little experimentation with the size of the nasal interface, the position of the cheek pads and the tension on the minimal headgear, I've been able to "set it and forget it" without any problems. The only time I encounter leaks is when I shift from back sleeping to side sleeping. At that point, I have to adjust not only the mask but the pillows as well to accomodate sleeping on my side.

If you have any specific questions about the mask, I'd be happy to try to answer them for you. I can't promise that the CC will work for you -- clearly it hasn't for many others here -- but there are a few of us that wouldn't be compliant without it.

Best,

Kurtchan

OwlCreekObserver · Post by **OwlCreekObserver** » Wed Aug 02, 2006 8:18 pm

kurtchan wrote:Sleepy,

I know that I'm definitely in the minority on this forum, but I LOVE my Comfort Curve and wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.

Same here. I have almost no problem with leaking, except every now and then when I turn over on one side or the other and I've learned to deal with that without much hassle. There's a clip on the primary hose that I usually fasten to the my PJ top or t-shirt down around my waist and that keeps the hose from shifting the mask around very much at all during the night. That seems to help quite a lot.

One thing I've been meaning to mention on this forum is that you have to be very careful to reassemble the mask correctly after you take it apart for cleaning. My other mask is a ComfortFull and cleaning it amounts to not much more than dropping it into some soapy water, rinsing it, and drying it. There are no removable parts to complicate the issue.

The ComfortCurve, on the other hand, breaks down into eight separate parts for cleaning, not including the primary hose, and they all must be reassembled correctly for the thing to work right. Little things like not getting the pads or the nose cushion exactly right will create problems until you figure out what needs to be done. For example, if the nose cushion isn't clicked into place properly, or if its center ridge isn't squarely inserted into the cross piece that it fastens to, you'll experience an annoying whistling or buzzing sound that will drive you and your bunkmate crazy. If you don't get the pads correctly mounted, they'll come off quite easily during the night, which they may also do if you try to slide the mask around your face instead of lifting them up a bit and then repositioning the mask.

I've never had a problem with the leaky joints that many people have described. It may be that Respironics has modified the design for their newer models, but I don't know.

So there is a bit of a learning curve with this thing and, as has been stated by an awful lot of people, it just doesn't seem to work for some folks. On the other hand, the same could be said for most any mask or procedure that's been discussed here.

Though I've only been at this cpap business since May, and have certainly had my highs and lows during treatment, I doubt that I'll find anything that works much better for me than the ComfortCurve.

OCO