If I need chinstrap withFFM, why use FFM?

[newname]

I don't know why I would need the chinstrap with a ffm, so if I have to use a chinstrap why not go back to Activa LT? I thought with FFM there was no need for chinstrap. Can someone explain. What's the benefit of FFM if need chinstrap with it?

[bdp522]

If your jaw drops too much when you sleep, a chin strap will help your mask keep a good seal. A chin strap doesn't always stop mouth breathing/leaking. You can try the nasal mask with the chin strap and see what your leaks look like. If they are in a reasonable range then you are good to go. I find that a chin strap doesn't help me much at all so I tape my mouth shut every night...works for me.

Brenda

[Pugsy]

Mouth breathing can equal dry mouth even with a full face mask because some people just need more moisture in the air to maintain adequate moisture in the mouth than a humidifier can produce because it was designed to add moisture to the smaller nasal cavity.

If a chin strap is enough to keep the mouth closed and dry mouth was an issue with a full face mask to the point of using the chin strap again with a full face mask....I wouldn't be using the full face mask. I would be using either the nasal mask of my choice if I liked it so much better and the chin strap was all that was needed to keep my mouth shut. Now if the chin strap is not sufficient to keep the mouth closed with the nasal mask and other options don't appeal to you (like taping) then one has to use a full face mask and just deal with the dry mouth the best they can with added moisture from something like Biotene or other hydrating agents.

[newname]

Thanks. I think I'll go back to my Activa LT. Maybe I'll give the FFM one more night first.

[DavidE]

Hello, newname. Your question is a good one. Along with Pugsy's reply (excellent, as usual, Pugsy. You must be a therapist), I might put in my two cents. I started with the Activa nasal mask, later having to add a chinstrap, since my mouth-breathing did not go away. Like you, I did not like the nasal mask plus chinstrap.
More recently, I tried the ResMed Quattro FFM and I really liked it (minus chinstrap), but like the nasal mask, it was doing a serious job on the bridge of my nose (as well as lines/circles under my eyes). I knew I was running out of options. Then, I saw the Respironics FitLife total face mask online and decided to ask my DME to find one. It looked scary, but turned out to be the best mask I have used. Of course, there's no contact with the nose, and I have no contact marks or sores anywhere on my face. Funny, but rather than feeling really confined wearing it, I found it is actually less confining feeling than the FFM, since there is no visual blockage along the sides of the nose as there is with a FFM. The field of view when it's on is wide and clear. It does not have to be disassembled for daily cleaning. There is a leakage problem (at times) across the forehead, but my DME reported a design change is underway at Respironics to correct that. For me, this is the best one ever.
Hope this offers another alternative idea to try.

DavidE
North Carolina
New ResMed S9 Elite CPAP with humidifier
Respironics FitLife total mask

[Sheriff Buford]

DavidE: welcome to the fitlife full face group. I often feel like we are a group-in-a-group here. The mask is not the most popular one, but I love mine because I could not use another type of mask (full-face, nasal...). Padacheek makes a pad for the fitlife now. The website is not updated yet. Try one. I use to get red marks on my cheeks and padacheek has totally eliminated them. You would not believe the filty remarks I got at work about those red marks on my cheeks. Don't worry... I have great come-backs!! The pada cheek is equipped with a small pad on the forehead. My leak rates are at my temples. I never had any leaks on my forehead, but have talked to other fitlife users and their leak rates are on their foreheads also.

Sheriff

[archangle]

I say a nasal interface with chinstrap is a better choice than an FFM with or without a chinstrap.

However, if you can't stop your mouth leaks with the chin strap, or you have irritation, can't breathe through the nose some nights, or have other problems that the FFM solves, use the FFM.

[BlackSpinner]

A chinstrap will help keep your jaws closed. It doesn't help keep my mouth closed however because the upper jaw seems to belong to a different person then my lower jaw. However it does reduce mouth breathing and it does help keep the lower jaw in the FFM. My Hybird with the chin flap does a more comfortable job however.

Mouth breathing leaves your mouth dry and therebye affects the bacterial content of your mouth causing tooth decay.