Dry Mouth with Full Face Mask

[DHHJS77]

Hi I'm new here but not to CPAP, or, in my case, BiPAP. I'm sure you've given advice on this topic a million+ times. I tried to search the topics, but couldn't find an exact match. I have a ResMed AirSense10. I use a full face mask, the Quattro, which I replace every six months, and I have a heated hose with a cover. I can't breathe through my nose, never have been able to.
I live in the Northern US and do just fine in the summer, but, now that the weather is cooler and the dew point is down, the dry mouth is back and I haven't even turned on the heat yet. When I turn the heat on, I have a whole house humidifier which I supplement with a portable one in my room at night, and that does help.
I also use Biotene. There just has to be something I'm missing with the humidifier setting on my machine and/or the hose temp. I tried the humidifier setting at the max and the hose temp at the max last night. I've bee up for 3 hours and my mouth and throat still hurt from being so dry. My "Events per Hour were .8 last night and are usually under 5. Should I lower the hose temp? The humidity on the machine? Just give in and set up the portable humidifier in my room already?
Thank you all for you help.
DHHJS

[LSAT]

Xylimelts from pharmacy or Amazon

[robysue1]

How much water do you go through during the night?

If you are not coming close to running out of water, then I think the first things to try are:

• Turning the humidifier setting up to its maximum setting
• Increasing the temp in the hose

Warm air is capable of holding more humidity. That's why I think turning the hose temp up, not down might help.

And yes, set the room humidifier up as well. The fact is that CPAP humidifiers are designed to keep the nasal cavity from drying out. The oral cavity is much larger and it's not uncommon for mouth breathers to complain about dry mouth problems even when they are using a full face mask.

[DHHJS77]

How much water do you go through during the night?

If you are not coming close to running out of water, then I think the first things to try are:

• Turning the humidifier setting up to its maximum setting
• Increasing the temp in the hose

Warm air is capable of holding more humidity. That's why I think turning the hose temp up, not down might help.

And yes, set the room humidifier up as well. The fact is that CPAP humidifiers are designed to keep the nasal cavity from drying out. The oral cavity is much larger and it's not uncommon for mouth breathers to complain about dry mouth problems even when they are using a full face mask.

I run the reservoir dry within 6 hours or so and have to refill it. I have the humidity and hose temp and maximum and am still getting dry mouth. I guess you're right and I will have to use the portable room humidifier. Thank you.

[DHHJS77]

Xylimelts from pharmacy or Amazon

I tried those and was afraid I would choke on them.

[ozij]

How are your leaks?
Use OSCAR or SleepHq to see what your leak are doing through the night.

I also suggest you have your dry mouth symptoms checked by a physician, since there may be non-cpap related reasons for that.

[zonker]

Xylimelts from pharmacy or Amazon

I tried those and was afraid I would choke on them.

have been using them for 6 years. never had one come off. put the colored side of the disk against gum and it will stick.

good luck!

[joeljjk11]

Try a chinstrap underneath the mask. I have used the basic resmed one and it stays in place due to the mask straps. Or you can lower your maximum pressure a bit. For me my mouth opens more when my machine goes to higher pressures so I lower my maximum. I have not noticed a difference in AHI. Not sure what your pressures are but obviously if your ahi starts going up then forget about that.

[SleepGeek]

I

I also use Biotene.

Once upon a time I had to gargle with salt water before bed. I found that my dry mouth was not as dry. Might be worth a try?

Just give in and set up the portable humidifier in my room already?

Why not.
Of course drinking more water during the day may also help.

[clownbell]

Not sure if the following happens to you, but let me put an idea out for your consideration.

I too had VERY dry mouth. The sleep center insisted I would have to use FFM. I tried it but still had VERY dry mouth even while using FFM. One night I awoke to find mouth open and below the FFM seal and the blower was going full tile. Some PAP experts believe that some users (not all) have a situation that when they fall into deep sleep their muscles relax and the jaw pops open. I have come to believe this is what happens to me. So I tried taping and the problem went away. That enabled me to ditch the FFM (which I found hot and claustrophobic) and use pillows instead. The pillows are SO much more comfortable.

So I suggest you consider taping your mouth and see what happens. Read the wiki about mouth taping. Good luck.