My kid has mouth leaks--what can I do?

[SleepingUgly]

I've tried posting on ASAA's pediatric site, but it's routinely pretty slow around there. I know this isn't the place for pediatric questions, but does anyone have a clue what would be a good chinstrap for an 8-year-old? The problem is that even if we keep his chin up, he leaks through his mouth. I have the same problem and the only things that have worked for me are strapping an Ace around my mouth, tape, and the Ultimate Chinstrap. I am not taping his mouth under ANY circumstances. I think he'll hate the Ace around his mouth, and it leaves terrible marks. And I'm ambivalent about whether the Ultimate Chinstrap is OK to use in a kid. If feels "wrong" to put something over his mouth. Course right now he has the Ruby chinstrap over his mouth, and he's blowing right through it and when he wakes up, it will be wet with slobber, which he'll hate. The Ultimate Chinstrap can be pulled down and held down in front to expose the mouth, but it can't be removed in one fell swoop by pulling it over the head because it's not elastic. To remove it, you have to undo two velcros--one behind the neck and one on top of the head. He would have no problem doing it. I just feel weird about covering his mouth... Should I? On the other hand, his sleep is so disturbed by leaks that it's reaching the point that I think he'd be better off sleeping without CPAP. Every few seconds it's disturbing him.

Anyone else have any ideas for a chinstrap for a kid or a method?

BTW, I'm not looking for a FFM for him at this point because (1) I think the doctor would prefer nasal and (2) the one we tried (the Quattro in an Extra-Small) was too big and (3) I'm trying to get away from masks pressing on his face. We just switched him from a Micro to Swift FX for Her with X-Small pillows, and I think that it will press less on his face and seal better than the Kids Micro, which is too big (it's the same as a size Small). But the mouth leaks are the issue.

[Sunshine Lady]

I tried the blue masking tape for a while but it made my face sore. Now I am using POLIGRIP denture adhesive strips. They come 40 strips to a box. Easy to use. Get the lips wet and put the strip on the lower lip and bring the upper lip down. It holds good but does not hurt to remove it. Just get the strip wet and it easily comes off. For me works a lot better than tape.

[M.D.Hosehead]

Just a thought--do they make child sized boil-n-bite protectors?

I wouldn't like the idea of covering my child's mouth, either. And taping would be out of the question.

I'm sympathetic because I, too, have never achieved a really comfortable setup for myself. But as an adult, I can weigh for myself how much discomfort I'm willing to bear each night. No one is making me do anything I don't choose to do. Deciding how much discomfort my child has to bear for what benefit is different and much harder. How he feels about it is pretty important.

But I don't see any value in making his life miserable while not solving a problem. I'd want him to know that, in the benefit to risk/discomfort calculus, I take the latter seriously. I believe I would not insist he use CPAP until I found a plausible solution for him to try. I'm hoping for some useful idea from others.

[gulfpearl]

Can you ask your dentist to make him a mouth guard to use at nite with the cpap. I had one made years ago after I had my braces removed. It might help.

[Riorican]

They do make youth sized boil n bite mouth guards. I use that instead of adult size. What about the chin-ups? If you get his mouth sealed tightly do you think he'd blow through the lips?

[Perrybucsdad]

You can always go to the sporting goods store and buy a youth football mouth guard. Not sure how good it would work, but it's worth a shot.

[nanwilson]

SU
I use a youth size clear boil & bite mouth guard and it seems to keeep my yap shut. You can get a upper and lower in one mouth guard, perhaps that would help.............I'm thinking cheap solution here since its a trial thing to see if it works for him....cost me $5. You can tell him its what hockey and football players wear .
Good luck.

[Meowser]

would this help?

https://www.cpap.com/productpage/respir ... -mask.html

[Bright Choice]

If it works, the b&b could be great for him. I'd think it might be more acceptable to him than some of the other options. Yes, an adult can be more discerning, knowing what is tolerable vs putting up with what parents are asking him to do.

And yes, taping or too much binding could be spooky.

Good luck!

[SleepingUgly]

I forgot about the boil and bite option... When I made myself one, it killed my jaw. I think it's really hard to "bite" in a very neutral position and then leave your teeth clamped in that position all night and now have a sore jaw, but apparently others have succeeded where I've failed. This may be tricky with my son for a number of reasons... First, how to get it boiled and bitten in the "right" position... Second, how to not mess with his bite (presumably a bit if not all of his problem is attributable to jaw issues, so I hate to inadvertently screw it up further)... Tolerance for having a big thing in his mouth. But it's a thought.