Need help with interface decision.

I have "tried on" both. I bought a CL2 and tried it for about 1 hour - and sold it. Same with the Swift. Neither one was half as comfortable as my Aura.

I also de-cap-itated my Aura. Simply because the headgear is too big for most women.

In my opinion, any nasal pillow interface can be stabilized by the home-made strap. The strap makes them work -- rather than tightening the headgear.

Once I tried the Aura, nothing else comes close to the comfort it provides.

I have not tried the aura, but love my CL2. I too like rested gal still made some adjustments to just make it perfect for me...deconstructed the rt angle swivel at the top and used the straight swivel from the swift. I use the simple cushion and am a heavy "huffer" at about 17cm pressure. Needed a little extra angle in on the nasal mask with resistence to assure no leaks....fixed with a very narrow 1/4" nonslip headband woven into the interface headgear. Also for comfort built a pvc hose hanger like featured here on another thread, which will help with hose management for any mask. Now its perfect......last night 0.0 leak and did not wake up once or hardly move at all in my sleep. Perfection is a wonderful thing (at least in this case) Finally pleasant slumber again. Also to avoid the slipping thing I found keeping the headgear adjusted to the middle and lower positions helps keep it from slipping. Using the upper adjustment....I got slippage.
Hope this helps.
Carol

Sleepy-eyes wrote:I can't believe there are only 6 people on this forum who use or have used one or both of these interfaces. Come on, I'm looking for comments to help me make a decision.

LOL!!

Well, if you really want to do a TON of reading of people's experiences with the ComfortLite 2 and/or the Twilight NP ("Aura") here are a couple of carpal tunnel inducing links guaranteed to keep you wondering, "Hmmm...which one, which one....?"

LINKS to Invacare Twilight NP (Aeiomed Headrest- Aura) nasal pillows mask topics
viewtopic.php?t=3098

LINKS to Respironics ComfortLite 2 nasal pillows mask topics
viewtopic.php?t=8066

Sleepy-eyes wrote:I can't believe there are only 6 people on this forum who use or have used one or both of these interfaces. Come on, I'm looking for comments to help me make a decision.

Research, my friend, research - go out into the wild and look for yourself - get up, step forward, and look outside the window; do not shout from your chair, the people will not hear you . . . anonymously derived

I love the Aura/Headrest.

I tried the ComfortLite2 about 8 months or so ago and before I could give it a really good try, one of my cats must've chomped on the hose that's part of the mask so I went back to using my beloved Aura. I also felt I maybe got the wrong size of direct seal interface as when I did try it, I had some difficulty.

I just received another ComfortLite 2 as I was due for my "every six months" new mask. And, well . . . I'm kinda regretting it and wishing I'd just ordered another Aura. This time I went with size M & L with the nasal pillows (I use a size L with Aura). And . . . I'm having difficulty getting a seal and have switched between Direct Seal (size M), nasal pillows (size M and L), and the cushions in various sizes. It's kind driving me crazy.

Last night I think I had good luck with it (don't have access to software to check just now) but it took a while. This was with the size M nasal pillows and I'll try again tonight.

Some differences I've noticed:

ComfortLite2 has a swivel curved tube that you hook the hose to. I've found that I have difficulty getting it in the right spot and it tends to mean the hose ends up pulling on the mask more than I like. It's a lot more awkward than the straight hose over the top with the Aura.

With the CL2, there is no buckle/velcro/whatever at the back, just a stretchy strap. You can adjust little velcro thingies up on top. With the Aura, you connect things at the back and there are also adjustments elsewhere. I do kindof like just having the stretchy band at the back on the CL2 rather than having to fuss with fasteners back there, though to be honest once I got the Aura to the right size I started just slipping it over my head anyway, but at least with the CL2 there's no velcro back there to get caught on your hair.

The CL2 has more padding/straps in contact with your head on top than the Aura does. At first I thought maybe the CL2 was more comfortable and it's possible I might find that if I get used to it, but I've found the Aura easier to manage on my head and less hard on my hair.

There are, of course, more options for interfaces with the CL2 and that's a big deal for some people where it's handy to switch between pillows, direct seal, and cushions. I wish they'd let you get pillows & seal and no cushions! At least it does look like you can purchase items separately now.

But I've found the nasal pillows on the Aura/Headrest the most comfortable of any I've tried, though so far I've only tried the Swift, Aura, and CL2. Much easier to get a good seal and less irritating to nose.

And the newer model of the Aura/Headrest works better than the original. I no longer need to use the "rubber band trick" to get things just right.

Anyway. I love the Aura and have used it as my primary mask for close to a year now I think. Not having straps on my face is great and the nasal pillows are comfy and it just works better for me. The CL2 shows promise and I'll stick with it for a bit longer to see if I can get it to work for me. I'm sure it may work better for some people as mileage clearly varies.

[An aside to those that know: The hose/tube that's on the mask for my Aura has holes in it and I'd like to replace that hose. I don't see it listed as a replacement part at cpap.com for that specific mask-- is that a standard small tube/hose that's available somewhere? ]

I like my hacked up Aura. Never tried a CL2.

Nicest thing about it IMHO is that the exhaust goes straight up, which is a lot cooler than it sounds.

I'm beginning to think that the straps on the CL2 are more comfortable than the Aura, but the nasal pillows themselves are definitely more comfortable on the Aura.

But I really hate the elbow thingie on the CL2 and may perform the surgery others have done to remove it.

Oh yeah-- I do prefer the exhaust port on the Aura by far over the CL2 because it does blow upward and is located further up so you can pull the covers higher than with most masks if you want and you also don't have the exhaust blowing in your spouses face in bed.

I still think I like the Aura best, but the CL2 is a decent option for people if they want the flexibility of having more interface options on a mask of this type. And I imagine the CL2s are easier to find at your average DME than the Aura would be.

Sleepy-eyes wrote:This request is for those of you who have had both, or those who only have used either one, could you please share with me your opinions and comments. Pro or Con.

I have both. First, I got the Aura, which was a huge improvement over my FF mask.

About a month ago, I got the CL2 with the simple cushion and the direct interface, since I already have pillows with the Aura.

The CL2 wins hands down for me, but I should add that I have only used the simple cushion, so the experiment is not well-controlled.

Hi,

First time poster here. I've been on CPAP for about eight months now and have been lurking around here learning a lot. This is finally something I think I can contribute to.

I found the CL2 about a month into my therapy and credit it with my ability to stay compliant. A couple weeks ago I decided it was time to upgrade to an APAP with software so I also bought an Aura at the same time and I've been using it for the last week except for last night (more on that later).

1. The CL2 is quieter than the Aura. The Aura is not what I'd call loud but there is definitely a bit of the Darth Vader effect. I've also tried a Nasal-Aire II and it was much, much louder than the Aura.

2. The straight hose connection on the Aura is better than is the swivel elbow on the CL2. With the CL2 I found I had to slide down in the bed just a bit to keep the hose connection from banging on the headboard. Having said this though, since I got the M series machine with the rear hose connection I rigged up a hose hanger above the headboard and I found that if I took the inlet end of the hose out of its velcro loop and let it hang free it felt almost identical to the Aura.

3. The Aura's exhaust exit going straight up is really nice. Mine actually does have two small exhaust vents on the bottom of the pillow as well which blow straight down. There's just a small amount of air coming out of the lower vents. The first night I didn't realize they were there and I thought I had a leak. The CL2's exhaust goes pretty much straight out but it's pretty well diffused. I alternate from side to side and my wife has never complained about it when I'm facing her.

4. The Aura pillow tubing which goes around the nose is nice in that it makes for a very low-profile mask. BUT, that same feature makes it more difficult to scratch an itch on the side of the nose.

5. I rate both masks comfort about equal. The CL2's head gear fits me a little better but the Aura feels like it's a bit lighter.

6. The CL2 is more convenient to clean. The tubing snaps off the head gear so you can easily immerse it or run water through it. The Aura's tubing is fixed to the head gear, which may be why they made the head gear out of rubber. When cleaning the Aura it's nearly impossible to keep the velcro material from getting wet.

I went back to the CL2 last night so I could get a comparison on the data readings. They were almost identical, both giving me an AHI of right at four with zero leaks.

Overall I don't have a huge preference of one over the other. I'm a little more comfortable with the CL2 but that's probably just because I've used it for six months.

I have been using the Aura (aka NP) for something approaching a year and a half. While I keep an eye out for what is new out there, I don't expect I will be leaving my Aura anytime soon. For the most part, I don't even feel it - sometime I wake up and wonder where it is and find that it is still right on my head. My only complaint is that the unit will get out of adjustment and it sometimes can be very frustrating to get all back so as to seal well. I have done no deconstruction of the mask, other than the simple 'rubber band trick.'

Good luck in your selection.

GL - have to laugh about scratching the nose with the Aura, that is the only thing that I have a problem with using the Aura.

I love my Aura NP. I do use the rubber band fix, but it is the only adjustment that I need to make with it. When I was trying on masks at the DME, I tried both at pressure and the Aura won hands down. I got a second Aura at my 6 month new mask from insurance, now that I have 2, I may have to deconstruct one of them and see what happens. I also have a hybrid that I paid out of pocket for to use on those occasions when I have a cold. I find the hybrid a bit warm and tend to sweat in it, so it slides on my face.

I'll put this disclaimer on my post, masks are an individual thing, and what works for one person may not work for another.

I am usimg the comfort2. The problem I have is that every night I have to adjust and adjust amd adjust.
I wish I could figure out how to get it right and keep it righti

gl wrote:Mine actually does have two small exhaust vents on the bottom of the pillow as well which blow straight down.

Welcome, and thanks for the great post.

I'm just curious though because the bottom should be sealed up, or at least it is on mine...?

gl, if you have holes in the bottom of your Aura pillows, those are defects, There should not be holes there.

--CG

I have tried them both. I could never get a seal with the CL2 (cushions) and sold it. But I will have to say the headgear was extremely comfortable!

I tried the Aura and ended up swapping it last week. Could not keep a seal with it and did not want to "de-capitate" it in case I wanted to swap/trade it.

I do have a breeze and love it. It is not my mask of choice right now, but it has a great headgear and the issue with it is in adjusting the pillows (there was a thread on this last week and I cannot find it) with the little screw on the pillow housing. It is great for side sleepers.

The back head piece did not bother me at all. I prefer the breeze over the CL2 or the Aura. - just my own experience.

Hope this helps.