Which are the better full-face masks?

[Jason S.]

I have the Comfort-Gel but seem to be having a problem with leaks. Any recommendations?

[WearyOne]

Jason, it's hard to say because one person's ideal mask can be another person's nightmare. Personally, the Hybrid works the best for me, and the Ultra Mirage Full Face is okay. Liberty sometimes will work okay, but not enough to use it regularly. I've tried quite a few other FF masks, and they're all nightmares for me as far as leaks go.

Unfortunately, you have to try it to know if any mask will truly work for you.

Pam

[RipVW]

Yes, Jason, WearyOne is right—it's really a "try & see" for all to decide which masks work the best for them in terms of fit, comfort, leaks . . . But, the clear leaders among FFM users are, I believe, the Resmed Ultra Mirage Full Face Mask and the Resmed Quattro. I have both, and my UMFF mask if my all time favorite. Good luck searching for the "holy grail" of CPAP masks—the quest of all us CPAP'ers!

[elader]

find a DME that lets you try on masks with a cpap machine. I tried on many fine masks that fit like crap because of my face shape. Then take it home and home that it doesn't hurt when you sleep on it. The Quattro seems to work for me. The comfortgel felt ok, but I would wake up in pain.

[edwhosed]

I've been using the Mirage Quattro since I started CPAP about 18 months ago. When I was first fitted, I thought tight was the best defense against leaks so I opted for the small size. For more than a year, I was happy enough with the mask, but still had some leaking. About 2 months ago, I asked the DME if I could swap my small for a medium. WOW. I couldn't believe how much better it was. I don't have to keep it so tight and leaks are a thing of the past so far. Also, it is much more comfortable. So, the moral of this story is try those masks on carefully to get your best results.

[Billy6]

I have the quattro and its perfect for me, easy to move around with no leaks. However, you need to be patient with a new mask, I think it needs at least a 2-3 week break-in period to mold to your face and to become familiar with the strap tightness.
The one that never worked for me was the Comfort2, for whatever reason. It is now my travel mask only.
I was going to try the Hans Rudolph FFM because it has no forehead anchor, but the CPAP.com site says that 70% of people who bought it with the insurance, returned the mask.

[nanuke]

Jason -

Everybody's right... we all have different faces and the only 'best' is what's best for you.

I've been using an ResMed Ultra Mirage standard medium for many years. Works for me but I'd like to try the Liberty. I'm going to see the DME on Friday and I'll ask if I can get one of those... I have 2 more Ultra Mirage masks.

SLEEP WELL

[Perchancetodream]

As others have said, mask choice is a very personal subjective issue. But for what it is worth, I have done a brief comparison of three of the "other" full face masks, the Hybrid, Liberty and Zzz-mask here viewtopic/t38220/Hybrid-Liberty-and-Zzz ... -Post.html

[rwalker]

Hi Jason

I have only been on CPAP for 6 weeks and because i am a mouth breather a full face mask is all I can cope with, i use the liberty at the moment and although i get nose leaks I tape them up and it is giving me around 6hrs sleep a night. I have tried many full face masks and i think the resmed mirage quatro is a good mask apart from like many other folk it gave me a really sore nose (bridge) so it's a case of trial and error, i am lucky over here in the Uk, if I have a problem I go back to the hospital and they give me a new mask.

Good luck

Richard

[CamiTampa]

I like the hybrid and liberty in that order. Every regular full face mask seemed to make me mouthbreath even more.
And I whole heartedly agree with this quote:

As others have said, mask choice is a very personal subjective issue.

Cami

[Severeena]

I keep telling everyone that not all face masks fit each other's face.
I use the Hans Rudolph Full face mask. I throw it in the dishwasher and let it run through the dry cycle and it is ready to wear to bed that night.

All face masks are not for our faces. My face is different than my husband's so he uses the obscene Ultra Mirage full face mask because his nose is to wide across the bridge.

The Hans Rudolph Full Face mask must be measured with a caliper. You can get the caliper from the HR people.

They will snail mail you information on the mask as well as the caliper to measure your face.

When I had problems measuring my face and getting the right size, I called the HR corporation told them what the numbers were and they tell me what size of mask I need.

The HR comes in Large, Medium, Small, Extra Small and Petite.

I use the Petite with the large head gear.

OK I like the HR>

I would love to be a sales rep for the HR.