Severe Sneezing

[S. B. Scarlett]

My husband has been using cpap for about a year. He continuously suffers with severe bouts of sneezing, runny nose, and feeling really miserable. Is this common? Anyone have any suggestions?

[echo]

Have you already ruled out other health problems like allergies or medication side effects?

Can you give us more detail on what setup he's using? Mask, machine, humidifer (heated?), settings.

The first thing that comes to mind, assuming it's CPAP related, is that the heat setting on the humidifer may be set too high.

Also a good nasal rinse in the mornings (using for example, a neti pot) can go a long way in helping sinus issues.

[S. B.]

He is not using the full-face mask but the nasal device. His machine does have a humidifier. His nose gets very cold during the night. So cold, he takes the device off often times.
He does take Claritin and uses a nasal spray often.

[Julie]

But is he routinely using the humidifier? At a higher setting? That may be causing problems (or do you have a cat ). If his nose is cold, you might suggest he try using 3M surgical tape (avail. at any drugstore in a regular little tape dispenser) to put a little pad of something or other over his nose (and mask).

[echo]

It seems to me the 'feeling miserable' is due to a number of factors that need to be address:
- He is not using the machine the whole night, due to the cold nose but also probably because,
- The runny nose indicates congestion, which will make it difficult to get good therapy using a nasal only mask, and
- Because of this he is mouth breathing (i suspect), which causes all the therapy to go out his mouth instead of working to keep his throat open

Therefore your first course of action would be to get a full face mask to ensure that he is at least getting decent therapy even when he is congested.

The nasal rinses will help clear the sinuses. Going to an ENT to rule out any other sinus issues is probably also warranted, as is getting checked out for allergies (food or environmental). Perhaps he has a deviated septum which traps particles, or sensitive nasal mucosa.

Many people report that using nasal sprays for a long time will result in a rebound effect, and could in fact make the sinuses worse. He should try to wean himself off of the nasal spray (with the help of the ENT), if he can.

Turning down the heating on the humidifier, or turning the heating off completely, or using it without the humidifer, may help with congestion.

If he complains of dry mouth/throat, that is a good indication of mouth breathing. (Another good indication is if you notice that air is escaping out of his mouth at night).

He is using filters with the machine, and cleaning them regularly? The foam filters should be cleaned once a week or so, and you can in additional use a fine filter that will help filter the incoming air even more.

There can also be a connection between GERD (acid reflux from the stomach) and congestion.

Now, there can be other issues which make the setup uncomfortable to use.
- Does he complain about the hose pulling on the mask? If so then you need to hang the hose from the headboard or attach it to the blanket so that it doesn't drag the mask down when he moves around.
- Does the mask fit well? Does he complain that it's too tight, or that it's leaking and waking him up? There are plenty of (full face) masks to choose from. Not all of them will fit every person, since each of us has different facial anatomy. Work with your DME to find a good mask that fits well. He needs to test the mask while wearing it connected to the machine to be sure that it's not leaking at his set pressure.
- Does he feel that his pressure too high or too low? If it's too low he could complain of "suffocating", if it's too high he could be complaining of leaks. This does not mean that you should change his pressure necessarily, but there are strategies to make the pressure more comfortable (e.g. using or disabling ramp, a different mask, etc).

It's important for you and him to both realize that the problems he's dealing with are all ones that we have also had. They are not insurmountable -- he CAN get over them and he CAN get to the point where he is using CPAP every night, for the whole night, happily and without problems. The fact that you've made it to this forum shows that you have a good attitude and want to make it work. It takes some to make it work, but it CAN be done!

So now, why don't you register on the forum and tell us what equipment hubby is using (by filling out the profile)?

[GumbyCT]

My husband has been using cpap for about a year. He continuously suffers with severe bouts of sneezing, runny nose, and feeling really miserable. Is this common? Anyone have any suggestions?

How long does this last? Does the Claritin provide any relief?

I have narrowed my symptoms to dust allergy. After breathing the clean filtered air all nite, my sinuses need time to adjust to lifes impurities.

[sleepycarol]

Last weekend we were able to get a new furnace installed. Until that time we didn't have any heat (I live in Missouri and yes the weather had turned cool enough that the house was cold). I was using a space heater but could only run one due to wiring problems. The bedroom would get very cold and I learned that with the Headrest I could cover the lower half of my face and be okay because the vent is on the upper part of the vent.

It might be worth checking into so he can burrow under the covers.

[Beckyboo222]

Hi, Sleepy, Carol,

I don't know if your husband's problem is the same as mine when I first got my Cpap with nasal pillows. Every three or 4 days, I would sneeze continuously and my nose would run continuously for the next 3 or 4 days. I would not use the mask a couple of days and finally go back and 3 or 4 days later, the same thing happened for about 4 rounds. After the first few times I called the therapist and was told to turn the heater all the way to the left. I did this and it got worse which I finally realized was exactly the wrong info. The heater was then turned off. My poor sinuses felt like they had ice on them because the weather had changed and it was cooler. I turned it most of the way to the right and the problem got much better. Even all the way to the right, the moisture is not very warm and certainly not body temperature, but to the left it felt like ice water was being blown on my sinus. After my second sleep study, it was recommended that I give up the nasal pillows and use a mask over my nose and I again have no problem. I would advise your husband to turn up his heater. Good luck.

[stevef1007]

Edited and bumped! (Sorry, but I'm desperate!)

I'm thinking about going from a nasal mask to a full face mask, but for one reason, and I'm hoping somebody here can help me. I've been on the cpap for 5 months, and have stuck with it. The problem is that I am having terrible problems with sneezing and a runny nose, many times for hours on end. The only medicine that has alleviated this problem so far are just temporary solutions because they are ones that I can't stay on, steroid packs, etc. All the ones I have tried that I could take permanently, pills and sprays, seem to have no effect, ie., Singular, Claritin, Benedryl, Xysal (sic), Veramyst, Nasonex, Nasocort, Astelin, etc. What the doctors say is that the cpap is drying me up so much during the night that when I take it off my body is trying to recuperate and is overdoing it. I have changed my humidifier (heated) setting in just the past couple of nights from 2 to 4, and haven't seen a real great advantage yet, although I don't know if it might take a while longer to see the long term effects. I have heard that going to a full face mask might help some since all the air (16cm) wouldn't be going thru my nasal passages, since I"m normally a mouth breather. How about the mouth mask? Oh, and I've had extensive allergy testing and am not allergic to anything. Any ideas? Thanks, and HELP!