New mask Resmed softgel nasal

[Gerryk]

Hey, I was just at my DME and gave the Liberty mask back. It doesn't look like it will work for me. They have been asking me to try a nasal mask, thinking now that my pressure is down perhaps I can use one.

Well, I went in and they asked if I would try a new mask they got in. They got it in recently but not in the past day or two and have been looking it over. They haven't tried it on anyone yet or given one to anyone. They asked if I would like to try it and I said sure, after all that they have done to help me I would try it.

So I have the Resmed Softgel nasal mask. It has the dial adjustment just like the quattro and the manufacturer said it is adjusted exactly like the quattro is. Hey that should be no problem for me, I have become pretty good and slapping the quattro on and getting a good seel in a few seconds.

I put it on and she turned on the machine and with no adjustment it only had one minor leak. That leak was right where my mustache is. Well, She looked at it and said it's right where your mustache is but it's a small leak, I don't think it will make much of a difference. I am not going to shave my mustache off, I have had it so long everyone thinks I was born with it, but it isn't in any baby pictures.

I brought the mask home with a chin strap incase my mouth drops open. Now, I have been a mouth breather my whole life and have been trying to breath through my nose for the past year. I have been doing pretty good so I may have good luck with this mask.

I will say now that my first thoughts were wow this looks like a comfortable mask that will work for lots of people. My second thought was make this same mask in a full face as in a quattro with this type of cushion instead of the one they use on it and they will have a big time winner.

Anyway, Has anyone else on here tried this mask and have any comments or suggestions on it?

I am going to give it a try tonight and will put my thought down here on it tomorrow.

Gerry

[harry33]

might be a compeditor for the notorious but sales leading respironics comfortgell which always breaks due to bad design but gives me a perfect fit due to the heat and press against face resizing feature

does your mask have this resizing feature?

interesting comfortgell info
http://thephantomwriters.com/free_conte ... king.shtml

[Gerryk]

This one doesn't have the heat and resize feature. I pretty much put it on my face and it fit which has never happend before. But it is built very similar to the quattro it looks like a quattro but just a nasal with a much better cushion. I will say that if I didn't have a mustache I would have had a leak rate of zero by just putting it on and tightening up the straps.

It appears very rugged, even more rugged than the quattro and the reviews I saw of it online were all at least 4 out of 5.

Gerry

[KatieW]

Anyway, Has anyone else on here tried this mask and have any comments or suggestions on it? Gerry

I have this mask, and like it, and the Activa LT so much that I have abandoned my 2 nasal pillow masks (ComfortLite 2 and Headrest) for now.

The Soft Gel and Activa LT have the same mask frame, so I have been alternating between the 2, and like them both, though they feel different. The Activa LT is thinner and floats on your face, whereas the SoftGel seals is thicker, and seals on your skin. The SoftGel is a little heavier, so sometimes shifts when I turn to my side. Leaks are very low with both, and easy to adjust. I think they work better if they, and your face, are squeaky clean. Have the dial and the straps pretty loose, then lie down, lift the mask cushion to inflate with air, then adjust straps and dial, but not too tight.

I found they get hot and sweaty if the humidifier is too high, but have learned to adjust for that.

Hope it works for you.

[sleepywolverine]

Ooh, if they come out with this in a full face, I'd be really interested. Looks good! Good luck!

[montana user]

I just got these masks in the sleep lab yesterday!!! So please keep me posted on what you think.

There is also another new mask we just got called the Easylife by respironics. This is a very cool mask. It has a double seal around the nose, and the seal continues into the forehead piece! So by therory, if you mask leaks around the nose it will actually continue through the forehead and then back down, keeping a continued seal. i'm sure there is a way to post a picture of it, I just haven't figured it out yet. so if anyone finds this mask and would like to post a picture that would be great! I also am trying to see if they make a full face mask in this style, so I can take it home and use it. If anyone gets one of these masks, please let me know how it works. I have a patient coming in tonight for a titration study and I hope to try it out!!!

[Gerryk]

Montana do you ever make suggestions to the reps or are they receptive to input?

I did try the mask on before I brought it home. It fit right off the bat but had a small leak because of my mustache. But I also tried it at a higher pressure than my machine reaches at night on auto, so I doubt it will leak that much.

I have asked the rt's and dme reps if they have tried any of these masks on themsleves. The answer I always got was I don't have sleep apnea. Just because someone doesn't have sleep apnea does that mean they can't put a mask on to see how easy or hard it is to put it on and adjust the interface so if fits properly? In my opinion if a tech, rt or dme did this it would really push them to the top.

I am not bashing anyone who doesn't try it on themselves as most probably never thought of it. Myself, I would want to wear it if I was asking someone else to wear it.
Gerry

[montana user]

I have not made suggestions in the past. But now that I am a sleep lab coordinator and pay much better attention to whats going on with the patients, I am going to be contacting each company I deal with. When I train new sleep techs, I make them put on the CPAP for at least 30 min., so they understand what the patient is going to go through. I find it funny how many companies, not just DME, sell products that they have never used, or would use, but expect us to believe everything they say.

I am very pro patient in treating apnea, not just pushing a product or an "idea" about sleep studies. Thats why I love this website so much. I read about everyones issues, and I take to heart these issues. I used to work for a 6 bed sleep lab, and we ran people through like lab rats! I hated it. I love my job now where its 1 on 1 and I can take all the time in the world to make sure my patients understand whats going on, and answer all their questions.

Well sorry I got off topic there, but I do appreciate any feed back on new masks ( any product actually), so I can tell my patients the pros and cons from other users!

[Gerryk]

No problem, you were just answering a question. Good to hear you like your job so well now.
What you do is called good customer service. You don't see that much now days.

Gerry

[mdintx]

Hey Gerry,

I got this mask not long after it came out. It's a good mask and like Katie said, it seals by contact rather than floating like some other masks. I've found it to be better than the ComfortGel. A couple of negatives have to do with the heat from the mask. When I wake up, my skin is pretty moist. It seals well but I get some leaks around the eyes as I try to keep it as loose as possible. It is heavy and depending on your pillow, you may struggle when side sleeping. The cushion is interchangeable with the Activa LT cushion so you can rotate if you like. I don't have a mustache so I can't help you with that part of it but otherwise, it's a comfy mask that's hard to dislike.

Mark

[DreamOn]

There is also another new mask we just got called the Easylife by respironics. This is a very cool mask. It has a double seal around the nose, and the seal continues into the forehead piece! So by therory, if you mask leaks around the nose it will actually continue through the forehead and then back down, keeping a continued seal. i'm sure there is a way to post a picture of it, I just haven't figured it out yet. so if anyone finds this mask and would like to post a picture that would be great!

Here's a photo of the EasyLife mask:



The product description can be found here: https://www.cpap.com/productpage/easyli ... -pack.html.

Thanks for posting about the ResMed SoftGel, Gerry. Since it uses the same frame as the Activa LT (which I already have), I plan to try that one in the future.

I received a new mask in the mail yesterday -- an Opus 360 nasal pillows mask. I was very eager to try it last night, of course! I was feeling perfectly fine when I went to bed. I woke up at 3:00 this morning, and one of my nostrils felt very odd inside. That started a sneeze-fest that lasted off and on all night, and is still going strong (7:00 p.m. the following evening), interspersed with lots of nose-blowing. I discovered that sneezing into a tiny nasal pillow is NOT a fun experience! I'm switching back to the Activa LT for tonight. I just hope I can breathe enough through my nose.

Now I'm trying to figure out if the direct air of the nasal pillows somehow irritated my nasal membranes and caused this or if this is actually a cold (which would be my first in many years). I had this same reaction the day after titration with the CL 2 nasal pillows mask, but have never had any similar problem with my AEIOMed Headrest. Time will tell....

~ DreamOn

[montana user]

Thanks Dreamon for the picture and info link!!!!! If anyone tries this, lt me know what you think!

[Gerryk]

Have you ever thought about asking certain pt's if they would try some new products out for you? Would the manufacturers give you one or two new masks to use for that purpose?

Gerry

[TheDreamer]

If it was available in a size equivalent to the Shallow Wide of the UltraMirage II, I'd want to try it. I liked the respironics gel mask, but it cut into my nose bridge...so a bit better adjustment there would probably make things great.

I had spoken to ResMed once...and they said LargeWide is the same as ShallowWide...they had just changed the naming convention. But the LargeWide ActivaLT was way too small compared to the ShallowWide, could barely breath with that on. Another site suggested ExtraLarge is what's equivalent to ShallowWide....got a MirageMicro in that size....it wasn't as wide as the ShallowWide, and not wide enough for me.

The EasyLife seemed like an intriguing mask, but I'm waiting until I can try one on or close to it...before seeing if I'll add it to my collection.

The Dreamer.

[montana user]

Have you ever thought about asking certain pt's if they would try some new products out for you? Would the manufacturers give you one or two new masks to use for that purpose?

Gerry

Yes they would, in fact that is why we have the two new ones I mentioned earlier. They are good about sending products for us to try. Now I just need to see how well they like my feedback and if they take it serioulsy or not.