A lot of patients come to me and tell me that they are “a mouth breather and need a full face mask”. This is the case sometimes, but quite often we will find that if a patient tries a nasal mask, it will help to open the nasal airway and allow them to breathe through their nose.

Why does it matter?

Both full face masks and nasal masks work with CPAP. My thoughts are that if you can get used to a nasal mask, there is less of it on your face and they often require less pressure; both of these points lead to less margin for error.

A lot of patients report back to me that the nasal masks allow them more freedom to itch and move through the night should they need to. It also means that there is less of the mask to bump, again, increasing comfort.

Full face masks do have their place and we have a lot of patients who are successfully managing their sleep apnoea using them. If you have never tried a nasal mask, I do strongly recommend giving it a try.

For a free mask fitting, pop in and see us at 82 Ovens Street, Wangaratta, or make the most of our money back guarantee on masks if you order online.