Beard / mustache thickness and mask leakage

ohdanny · Post by **ohdanny** » Tue May 12, 2015 8:19 pm

Hello!

I am newly diagnosed with moderate OSA and I am currently waiting to be lined up with my DME to get geared. Thanks to you folks, I've been able to do a fair bit of research beforehand as how to best prepare. The only thing that I'm having trouble finding specifics on is how much length of facial hair can affect mask leakage. How much a beard / mustache exactly are we talking here where it might start to cause problems if I were to use a full face mask?

Here's a picture I took a minute ago of how much facial hair I usually have going: http://i.imgur.com/VfzkJZh.jpg

I don't usually grow it out any more than the length it's at now. Am I likely to experience any more leakage with this amount of facial hair than I would without any at all? I'm not terribly attached to it and I want to ensure my treatment goes as best as possible.

I'm sure this question has been addressed before but I am having trouble finding a solid response - sorry!

Thanks for reading!

Gasper62 · Post by **Gasper62** » Tue May 12, 2015 8:24 pm

You can be as hairy as Sasquatch and still do fine with nasal pillows. (might have to trim yer nostril hairs a little )

Pugsy · Post by **Pugsy** » Tue May 12, 2015 8:32 pm

There are men with Santa Claus beards using full face masks...so it can be done. Probably have some challenges to sort through but it can be done.
Unless you have some sort of chronic nasal congestion issues that mandate mouth breathing a lot during the night you might want to look at one of the nasal pillow masks (see link to mine in my profile) and it won't matter at all what amount of facial hair you want to have.

palerider · Post by **palerider** » Tue May 12, 2015 8:36 pm

Gasper62 wrote:(might have to trim yer nostril hairs a little )

I had more trouble with the air tickling those with my ffm than I do with pillows...

The Latinist · Post by **The Latinist** » Tue May 12, 2015 8:38 pm

I have a slightly longer beard than your, sometimes growing out even longer. I had some trouble with my initial full face mask, but I don't think it has anything to do with facial hair. It did not change significantly when I tried shaving the beard. In the end I switched to nasal pillows (AIrfit P10 like Pugsy; see signature) and they solved all my issues.

I guess what I'm saying is: beard or no beard, you gavd to find the right mask for you. And the P10 is awesome.

ohdanny · Post by **ohdanny** » Tue May 12, 2015 8:46 pm

I tend to have trouble breathing through my nose while sleeping so I've grown accustomed to breathing through only my mouth at night. That being said, I never considered nasal pillows all that much. I figured adjusting to CPAP might be easier by going with something more familiar than changing my breathing style entirely? I dunno... I will definitely look into the Airfit P10! Thanks for the tip

CapnLoki · Post by **CapnLoki** » Wed May 13, 2015 3:34 am

I have a "stubble beard" perhaps a bit fuller than yours. I have no problem using a Resmed Quattro Air mask. The smaller full masks fit close to the nose and under the lip so there is only a minor contact with the beard. I do trim those areas a bit closer for comfort, but it isn't really needed. Also, I've started using a Pad-a-Cheek liner and found that it works surprisingly well.

Gasper62 · Post by **Gasper62** » Wed May 13, 2015 11:32 am

palerider wrote:
Gasper62 wrote:(might have to trim yer nostril hairs a little )
I had more trouble with the air tickling those with my ffm than I do with pillows...

I could braid mine if I didn't keep em trimmed !

Uncle Flapp · Post by **Uncle Flapp** » Wed May 13, 2015 11:39 am

I have a mustache and beard just a little bit longer than yours. I usually use a setting of 4 on the trimmer.
Although I too recently switched to nasal pillows, I didn't have any leak problems with the Quattro Air and F10 when using mask liners. Both Pad-a-cheek and Remzzzzs worked well.

- Flappy

The Latinist · Post by **The Latinist** » Wed May 13, 2015 5:07 pm

ohdanny wrote:I tend to have trouble breathing through my nose while sleeping so I've grown accustomed to breathing through only my mouth at night. That being said, I never considered nasal pillows all that much. I figured adjusting to CPAP might be easier by going with something more familiar than changing my breathing style entirely?

I, too, thought I was a mouth breather; indeed, I had developed serious hyperkeratosis on my tongue from it. But it's turns out my mouth breathing was really a side effect of my apnea; I was gasping for breath because my airway was collapsing. You may find that with CPAP treatment you just no longer breath through your mouth. And if that's the case it might actually speed your adjustment. If I'd had my P10 from the start it would've been much easier for me.

That said, of course YMMV.

RogerSC · Post by **RogerSC** » Wed May 13, 2015 7:08 pm

As mentioned, I've also seen a bunch of "didn't expect to be able to use nasal pillows, but worked fine for me" kind of postings. I have a beard and mustache just a mite longer than yours *smile*, and nasal pillows, of course, work fine. Didn't know if nasal pillows would work for me until I tried them, got lucky. You should try that as well, even if you think that you'll need to be breathing through your mouth. That'll make the facial hair question academic if it works for you.

There are a couple of tricks that you can use if you have a rocky start with nasal pillow masks. You can work on the thing with training your tongue to be on the roof of your mouth via consciously working on it during the day. If you can get that to work for you at night, even if you open your mouth, air won't be blowing out of it. And there are chin straps, too, and various other things that people do to make nasal pillow masks (or nasal masks, as well) work for them. But a nasal pillow mask might just work for you with no trouble, time will tell. The ResMed Swift FX and AirFit P10 are the best nasal pillow masks for me, and I've tried them all. So I'd recommend those, personally, for ones to try.

glarnold · Post by **glarnold** » Wed May 13, 2015 7:29 pm

My beard is considerably longer and fuller than your pic. I've been a mouth breather all my life. I can't get a full breath of air through my nostrils no matter how hard I try. Having said that, I obviously use a ffm (see sig). No problem with sealing or with leaks, with these masks, for about ten years, now. Try it, and good luck.

borowik · Post by **borowik** » Wed May 13, 2015 10:22 pm

I have really long beard and everything is fine

uvabigm · Post by **uvabigm** » Thu May 14, 2015 8:17 pm

My beard is thicker and slightly longer than yours. I have had great success with the Mirage Quattro FFM .

uvabigm · Post by **uvabigm** » Thu May 14, 2015 8:18 pm

The philips amara gel works well too.

Beard / mustache thickness and mask leakage

Beard / mustache thickness and mask leakage

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