new Hybrid mask issues, please help me

jhollon · Post by **jhollon** » Mon Oct 22, 2007 7:38 am

Alright, previously i have been using the swift II head gear and the only real problem i have had with it is it is kind of loud, escpecially if i lay on my back. So, after reading all kinds of reviews, i ordered the Hybrid mask. Partly for a change as well as the ability to use my machine with a head cold which is common this time of year in the deep south. Well, i was excited when i got the new mask in on Saturday and spent a good portion of the day fitting it to my face and powering it up to test it out to stop any leaks before bed time. It fit comfy and seemed to be a winner. I stayed up late and watched the LSU/Auburn game on Sat night so i didn't get to be until about 1AM and was looking forward to it. I laid down, it the ramp button and started to drift away. To my surprise, i was awakened several times in the night by my wife telling me i was snoring. WHAT????? I had no clue how this could happen. I was groggy, but managed to tighten my mask thinking i was having a leak and pressure wasn't getting into my nose. Went back to sleep and the same thing happened, she taped it, i was snoring again. what gives? Has anyone seen this as well. Do i need to up the pressure on my machine since it services two orafices? I wouldn't think so, but i like this mask and as usual can't return it now that i have tried it and don't want to be out the $150 i laid down for it. maybe it is me, but i don't seem to feel the same pressure going into my nose as before the mask.

ANY help on this would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Jeff

WearyOne · Post by **WearyOne** » Mon Oct 22, 2007 8:27 am

Hi, Jeff!

I use the Hybrid and love it, but---according to Encore Pro, I still snore. I sleep alone, so I can only go by the software. (My husband snores so loudly I haven't been able to sleep in the same room with him for years--he refuses to do a sleep study.) My numbers are good, though, and I don't wake myself up from snoring anymore, so I know there is improvement!

When I first started CPAP, I had a NAII, and the pressure from that definitely felt stronger than with the Hybrid. But I upped the pressure just a little bit to see if the snoring lessened, and it didn't. The AHI and time in apneas didn't change either, so I just dropped back down to where I had been. Always felt panicky wearing the NAII, which is why I tried the Hybrid shortly after I started therapy.

I've never used any other mask successfully, so I have nothing to compare it with, really. The only one I've even been able to wear all night is the UMFF, and I get worse results from that one, so I'm sticking with the Hybrid.

Hopefully, someone will come along and be able to shed some light on why you didn't snore with the other mask (or at least didn't snore loud enough to wake your wife), and why you do now.

Pam

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DreamStalker · Post by **DreamStalker** » Mon Oct 22, 2007 9:08 am

Hybrid is a high vent flow mask ... you may need to increase the humidity.

Also check to make sure the O2 injection ports have the plastic caps securely closed.

Snoredog · Post by **Snoredog** » Mon Oct 22, 2007 10:12 am

wouldn't give you $.29 cents for that interface,

-increase your pressure by 1 cm

ozij · Post by **ozij** » Mon Oct 22, 2007 10:14 am

What kind of machine are you using? The Hybrid's vent flow may be too hight for an automatic machine (set on auto) to handle.

O.

curtcurt46 · Post by **curtcurt46** » Mon Oct 22, 2007 5:55 pm

When I first started CPAP a few years ago, my wife told me I was still snoring. I told my doctor about it and he increased my pressure from 9 to 11. At the pressure of 11 i still had a slight snore based on my encore pro reposts.
You have to ask yourself is the snoring affecting my sleep or my partners. If so you might want to up the pressure a notch (1cm) at a time and see what it does for you. If it's not affecting you or your partner, then snore on.

roster · Post by **roster** » Mon Oct 22, 2007 6:07 pm

Jeff,

You need to fill out your profile so that we can see what machine you are using and also indicate what the pressure is.

I encouraged a friend to get a Hybrid because I really like mine. His wife said he was snoring the first three or four nights but then the snoring went away and he still uses the mask regularly.

Of course I can't say you will have the same experience.

lking · Post by **lking** » Tue Oct 23, 2007 10:39 am

Jeff:

I was not a successful user of the Hybrid, once I'd go to sleep the muscles in my face would relax so much that the seal would break. No amount of adjusting worked. After 4 nights trying to make the Hybrid work and very little sleep I gave up and returned it to my DME. My smart card read that I had a high mask leak %, high AHI's and Snore vibrations. The RT thinks the problem I had with the Hybrid was due to my face structure being round (ie I have a fat face) and with the curvature of the mask it just doesn't work on a round face.

Pre-Hybrid I used a nasal pillow mask with success. I have returned to a nasal pillow mask (ResMed Mirage Swift II) and am back to sleeping 8+/- hours a night with a 3.4 AHI, no leaks or snoring.

Lynda

Snoredog · Post by **Snoredog** » Tue Oct 23, 2007 10:48 am

curtcurt46 wrote:When I first started CPAP a few years ago, my wife told me I was still snoring. I told my doctor about it and he increased my pressure from 9 to 11. At the pressure of 11 i still had a slight snore based on my encore pro reposts.
You have to ask yourself is the snoring affecting my sleep or my partners. If so you might want to up the pressure a notch (1cm) at a time and see what it does for you. If it's not affecting you or your partner, then snore on.

if you are on the Bipap auto and snoring you need to bump up your EPAP to eliminate those, but from your PM where your residual OA=17.7, doesn't sound like your machine is addressing your issues properly with current settings.

First you need to drag out your PSG and determine if they didn't put you at 9.0cm for a reason, like any notations of CA and MA. Because if those are listed that is why they put you at 9.0, you go to 11 and you can increase your AHI and you know what the report of that looks like, Bipap may even make that worse.

roster · Post by **roster** » Tue Oct 23, 2007 1:01 pm

[quote="lking"]......... The RT thinks the problem I had with the Hybrid was due to my face structure being round (ie I have a fat face) and with the curvature of the mask it just doesn't work on a round face.

.............

Lynda

jhollon · Post by **jhollon** » Wed Oct 24, 2007 9:24 am

updated profile, sorry about that. I have increased my pressure to 12 now and the wife woke me up three times last night telling me i was starting to snore again. Previously, i was using a swift 2 without snoring, but it was so loud, it woke me up around 8 times per night. The hybrid is so much quieter than the swift 2 and i love how it fits on my face so i want to make it work. I have also bumped up the humidifier to 2 (live in mobile, al; real muggy place all the time - have to use chainsaw to cut through the air just to walk around most days). is bumping the pressure up more than it is now a REAL danger, i just dont feel like the air is being FORCED into my nose like with the swift 2, but again, that thing is too loud and i like the fit of the hybrid. Please help me. I am in the networking field and on-call this week which means very little sleep, but i would like to get at least some. I have no doubt this will work with some tinkering. I will give anything a shot. I even have tried to sign up for the pur something trial sleepyman is giving out. I am despirate and so is my wife. I even had my tonsils removed, my nose routed out and my uluva basically removed before i got my machine trying to make life a bit easier.

DreamStalker · Post by **DreamStalker** » Wed Oct 24, 2007 9:44 am

Well, using too much pressure you could blow yourself up ... I know I know, bad joke.

So you are running your APAP in CPAP mode at 12 cm?

Do you know how to read your data from the machine?

What is your leak rate?

What is tour AHI?

We need more info. Just because you start the night off with no leaks does not mean you will not develop them later on during the night. Humidifier is for comfort ... if you feel fine with current setting then no need to adjust (only if you are experiencing dry mouth - adjust up or mask/hose condensation - adjust down).

The mask interface is the most difficult part of this treatment. Once you get that resolved it's all down hill. Hang in there.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Wed Oct 24, 2007 9:48 am

i have no card reader or card interface on the machine so i have absolutely no idea how to answer those questions. Can i just buy the insert for my machine or does it have to be built in?

jhollon · Post by **jhollon** » Wed Oct 24, 2007 10:00 am

well, i found the prices for adding the smart card to my cpap machine as well as the reader for the computer and the software. I guess i will have to do this by trial and error. I am not sinking another $300 into this. I have already spent around $300 out of pocket trying to get a mask that i can live with. I can't afford to be dumping another pile of money out for something my insurance isn't too happy about spending the money for. DME will not update another scrpt without another sleep study and that was billed to my insurance for around $10K for two nights, most of the cost had to go towards the GREAT FOOD. No real alternatives in town since all of them seem to be tied together in some form or fasion. I guess i will rely on some luck.

thanks for the help so far and i will update as progress progesses?

Jeff

cflame1 · Post by **cflame1** » Wed Oct 24, 2007 3:13 pm

you should be able to get the info off the screen on your machine if your profile is right. Have you been into the menus??