I jsus found this site and have a question about humidity.  I cannot use my CPAP machine as I get extreme dry mouth.  It can get so bad that I wake up almost every hour with my lips stuck to my teeth and no saliva in my mouth.  As I sleep with my mouth open part of the night, I have the mask that covers my nose and mouth.  Does anyone else have this problem?  I have an appointment with an ENT surgeon as I don't know what other options I have.

homecareRRT wrote:

Has anyone heard of heated humidifiers making one's chest "hurt" in the morning?  I've had 2 customers complain that they had chest discomfort/pain in the morning after using the heated humidifier.  The discomfort stopped when the used the CPAP without htd humidifier.  One may also have mild asthma.

Just wondering!

homecareRRT, personally I find it hard to believe that the humidfier is the cause of your patient's problems since it is only providing warm moisture.  I have used mine every night for over two years, and have many fewer problems than I did the first few weeks I tried leaving the heating unit turned off.

More likely, perhaps, is that the pressure is too high, or they have other problems like COPD.

However, having said that, many people here seem to do quite well either without a humidifier at all, or with the heater turned off.  If your patients are more comfortable without it, that may be the best choice for them.