Better treatment through the nose?

In reading Roosters posts, I believe he is saying a person has a better chance of keeping the airways open when the air is pumped through the nose than through the mouth. If true, I would assume a nasal mask would then give better treatment than a full face mask assuming one taped the mouth if they were a mouth breather.. Is this true? Does it take less pressure to keep the airways open when pumped through the nose instead of the mouth?

track wrote:In reading Roosters posts, I believe he is saying a person has a better chance of keeping the airways open when the air is pumped through the nose than through the mouth. If true, I would assume a nasal mask would then give better treatment than a full face mask assuming one taped the mouth if they were a mouth breather.. Is this true? Does it take less pressure to keep the airways open when pumped through the nose instead of the mouth?

Nope. I wouldn't trade my full face masks for a whole room full of nasal masks. I was a mouth-breather (probably due to problems in my nasal passages), but after starting this therapy, I now breathe exclusively through my nose in my full-face mask. A few times, my mouth has fallen open and it woke me up (cold air and/or dry mouth).
There shouldn't be any differences in pressure delivery, either.....other than direct nasal delivery MAY irritate the nasal passages a little more.

Den

Throat does not care where the pressure comes from ... well, perhaps not a good idea to come from your butt

The pressure is an outward force placed on the airway to keep it open. In order to maintain that pressure or force, one must not let the air escape from the mouth and that is the reason for FF mask or taping, etc.

So no ... not true, a nasal mask is not neccessarily better. The better mask is the one that is more comfortable and easier to keep leak free. Having said that, the FF mask has more facial real estate to keep sealed ... so for some, it is more difficult to find a properly fitted FF mask than a nasal mask. Of course there are other reasons for why some prefer one type of mask interface over another.

I agree with Dreamstalker that the throat doesn't care. However let me add another thought based on my experience. When my nose is partially blocked due to congestion, I can't tolerate a mask that presses down even partially oin the outside of my nose (like my Activa). This tends to close off my nasal passages just enough to make nose breathing too difficult.

I can however use my Optilife nasal pillows at those times, because, to my way of thinking, they are inflating my nares allowing air to pass more easily.

Same thing is true for me with a FF mask. The nares are closed down a bit more due to external pressure, and I have to breathe through my mouth. Haven't really found a FF that doesn't leak though, so I try very hard to make the Optilife do the job. Have only been disappointed on very rare occasion.

track wrote:In reading Roosters posts, I believe he is saying a person has a better chance of keeping the airways open when the air is pumped through the nose than through the mouth. If true, I would assume a nasal mask would then give better treatment than a full face mask assuming one taped the mouth if they were a mouth breather.. Is this true? Does it take less pressure to keep the airways open when pumped through the nose instead of the mouth?

This is what I had posted:

The ENT says air flow through the nose can more easily move the tongue out of the way as compared to gettting most of the flow through the mouth. He cited both the Bernoulli Principle and the Venturi Effect.

Is the doc right? I will try to find out after I heal and will report results on this forum.

Even if the doc was wrong about this point, I think being able to get sufficient air through the nose, awake or asleep, will bring significant physical and mental health benefits. Remember, as Slinky pointed out, it would be nice to get my IQ up to 80!