Bridge of Nose - Irritation from Mask - What Worked for You?

jucs wrote:PapCap II

What is this exactly?

You can find the PAPCap and PAPCap Plus here: http://www.pur-sleep.com/products/produ ... category=6. It is a cotton cap that has a detachable chinstrap. You can wear your headgear over either model, or use the connectors on the Plus to attach your standard four-point mask.

~ DreamOn

EDIT: I forgot to mention that the sponsor of this forum, https://www.cpap.com, does carry the PAPCap version that doesn't have the mask connections: https://www.cpap.com/productpage/pursle ... otton.html.

Fisher & Paykel FF Forma fit ws the only one that was roomy enough for my nose so the top bridge doesn't even touch my forehead or on the top of my nose and the babndaid fri

My first mask - Comfort-Gel irritated the bridge of my nose until I got it fitted correctly.
I found that if you cranked the top portion of the headgear down too much it would groove the bridge of my nose.....So I loosened it up and the irritation went away after a few days.
I now use an Activa LT (Was using a regular Activa) with a Large Wide nasal interface. I was using the Standard in the Activa (Large in the Activa LT.....why can't they just keep the sizes the same names?? It seems like they want to confuse us). Again, I found that keeping the top part just tight enough to hold the mask in place was all that was required.
Essentially the headgear just holds the mask from falling off -- if you have to crank it down to get a good seal, you probably don't have the correct size -- at least that's what I have found!!!

I used a Headrest for quite some time as well, but since it's nasal pillows, it didn't affect the bridge of my nose, BUT, like all the other masks, size and fit......

Good luck
cheers
goose

I use washable plaster strip which I cut down to size. I cut off some of the adhesive part and leave about 4mm each side of the center pad. This saves ripping half your face off when removing it next morning. I cut the top two corners off one bit round to fit near my eyes better and then cut another piece to stick on top of the first and set that a bit lower down. I wipe the bridge of my nose and face with neat TCP antiseptic before putting this stuff on and immediately when taking it off.


So far the sore nose has reduced dramatically and I have not had any spot things or soreness at all since starting to do this, just a little bit of redness.

I wonder if the TCP toughens up the skin by de-oiling it in some way???

I also have found that it is best to say £&%" the leaks for a bit and just relax and let your face take on some of the dents the mask is trying to make. After a few minutes slowly refit the mask with the hose disconnected until happy it is about right then re-connect the hose. This seems to be working for me quite well at the moment.

I did find that most leaks start just as the ramp gets to full blast, so I turn the thing on, set at five minutes ramp and don't even expect a seal till it gets there. Waiting for twenty minutes for the thing to get to warp speed and hear the farting kick in was only tolerated once.

So my method is.
Keep face totally sterile, washable tape on nose, let face settle into shape, fit mask with hose disconnected, attach hose at full pressure.

Then

Get itchy nose, scratch the itch, ruin the seal, swear a lot, start again....

There has to be a comedy film about cpcp...

Staring Tom Snooze?

I've only used 2 masks, Ultra Mirage and Quattro full facers. In both cases I tolerate a bit of leak so that I don't have to over-tighten. I did have to change the UMFF seal to the "small bridge" option, but the standard Quattro seal is fine for me.

At the beginning, I did get a rash from the silicone, but it seems I've developed an immunity now.

Straps loosen over time, so I occasionally tighten just enough to reduce the leaks. That is, the leaks go away unless I position myself against the pillow badly.

So, I fall into the "find the best fitting mask and work with it" group.

deadhead77 wrote:I wonder if the TCP toughens up the skin by de-oiling it in some way???

What is TCP?

millich wrote:What is TCP?

TCP is an antiseptic sold in the UK.

I ordered the new product mentioned here and the material one too. I have to get it to work period. The sinus issues and ear issues cannot be tolerated so a non-nasal must be used. I did use a nasal with my CL2 and moleskin. Seemed to be better breaking out wise but we will see what happens later today. I have a quattro just waiting for me, I am experimenting with the moleskin with the CL2 first. I will report back on both products once I get them and test them out.

Another thing that I've done and use is the PAPCap. Replacing the "factory" headgear with the PAPCap has worked really well with the Activa and ComfortGel, though it is not as flexible as the elastic headgear. With the ComfortGel one of the things that I needed to do is pull the mask away from my face to let it re-seal and with the PAPCap I was never able to figure out how to do that.....The ComfortGel caused more nose bridge irritation than any other mask I've used -- it needed the top strap loosened so it didn't squash down so hard.....it'll seal without being crushed against your nose....

cheers
goose

Another great post. I've copied and pasted some of the content to the CPAP Wiki for easy reference:

wiki/index.php/Pain_on_the_Bridge_of_the_Nose

Please add anything I've missed. Thanks Rooster for starting the thread and for everyone who is continuing to contribute.