Profile Lite Nasal Gel Mask from Philips Respironics, Very Soft and Secure but Unable to Wear Eyeglasses with It

The Profile Lite Nasal Gel Mask from Philips Respironics is one type of many masks used by people requiring the use of a mechanical ventilation system (BIPAP, CPAP or ventilator). There are many different styles, each with advantages and disadvantages.

I use a ventilator with 2 different masks -- one at night and one during the day. During the day I wear the ResMed Mirage Vista Nasal Mask and at night I wear this Profile Lite. Each serves a different purpose but the main reason I wear the Mirage Vista during the daytime is that I can wear my eyeglasses with it on. The Profile Lite is the more comfortable of the two but I cannot wear my glasses with them and I cannot see well without my glasses. If I could wear the Profile Lite all of the time, I would.

The Profile Lite is a mask that goes around the nose and across the bridge of the nose. It boasts a soft and light gel cushion, a gel forehead cushion, sturdy plastic casing, a swivel tubing interface, secure headgear, built-in silent exhalation port and pressure ports that allow it to be measured directly at the mask. The mask and headgear are ready to go off the shelf and can be customized to the contours of the users' face using hot water.

Below is a list of some of the positives and negatives as I see them from my own experiences. Other users may have other requirements that may or may not be met by the Profile Lite mask. Every user has different necessities that result in different opinions -- this is just my own opinion for what it's worth.

Positives

Lightweight

This mask is very light weight and I can barely feel it on my face. My Mirage Vista is lighter but that mask is also half the size of this, so, comparatively the Profile Lite is just as light.

Soft Gel Cushion

The soft gel cushion is really my main reason for liking this mask. It is very soft on my face without being too pliable. I get less pressure sores on my face with this mask than most others I have tried.

Forehead Gel Cushion

Not all masks come with a forehead cushion. Masks in the past allowed for the attachment of foam inserts for the forehead to alleviate some of the pressure at the bridge of the nose. These foam inserts had a tendency to break after a few short uses. The Profile Lite mask uses a gel forehead cushion with hard plastic clips that keep it in place. The mask comes when one of these already connected at the top with plastic clips. If you do not want it, it can be easily unsnapped and removed. I usually alternate between using the gel and removing it.

Secure Headgear

This mask has one of the most secure headgear setups among the masks I have tried. The headgear is attached to the mask with 4 straps that slip through 2 slots at the top of the mask and 2 at the bottom with Velcro ends for quick and easy attaching and detaching. Once the mask is on and the straps are secured to my liking, I just need to open one of the bottom straps each time I remove or put the mask on. Once the straps are on, the mask is very tight and secure with only a fraction of an inch of give.

Tight Seal

Due to the secure headgear as well as the gel cushion and inner flap, the air pressure is tightly sealed within the mask. I have fewer air leaks with this mask than any I have tried in the past. A tight seal is crucial when using a ventilator and the Profile Lite mask definitely delivers.

Sturdy

The outside of the mask (everything except for the gel and flap) is made of a sturdy clear plastic that really feel strong to me compared to other masks which often feel flimsy with opaque plastic. I never developed a crack on the plastic part of this mask.

Adaptability

Adaptability is the key factor when using ventilator masks. By this I mean that the swivel which connects to the tubing that leads to the ventilator needs some type of connector piece to join the 2 together for a complete circuit. Many of my masks have oddly sized swivels that are incompatible with most connector pieces that fit into the tubing. The Profile Lite mask has a very compatible opening of the swivel part that fits with the standard connector pieces that come with the tubing. This means that I don't need to search through dozens of different sizes of connectors to find one that fits. It also requires only one connector part to connects the swivel to the tubing, unlike other masks, like the Vista, that required 2 or 3 connectors at the same time in order to find a part that fits both ends.

Easy to Clean

This mask is relatively easy to clean. The outside requires a simple washing with soap and water and the inside requires the same but you need to wipe around the inside to get around the gel insert and flap inside to thoroughly clean the inside of the mask. Some masks, like the Vista, are very open inside and the rubber insert that touches your face can be removed for even more thorough cleaning. Still, this mask is easy to clean compared to other masks I have tried.

Negatives

Gel Cushion Wears Out Quickly

While the gel cushion feels good against my face, it wears out very quickly. The Profile Lite mask is under warranty for 3 months I believe and insurance will only cover one every 3 months but the gel cushion seems to wear out in about 2 months for me. I notice that each year the gel cushions seem to be getting flimsier and flimsier, making them wear out quicker and quicker -- probably by design to make users buy more masks. Once the gel starts to deteriorate it becomes really soft and creases form in the rubber containing the gel which makes forfrequent air leaks. The instructions say to boil the mask when you first receive it in order to conform to your face for a better seal but this seems to make the gel deteriorate even faster, so I stopped doing that and the seal I get is enough for my satisfaction.

Inner Flap

The inner flap is inside of the mask behind the gel part in order to create another layer of seal. It generally works fine when the mask is new but, as the gel cushion deteriorates and becomes flimsier, the inner flap starts becoming a problem. The flap starts touching my nose more and sometimes blocking some of the air from reaching my nose. It has never completely blocked my airways but enough to become annoying and require constantadjusting, Oftentimes when the deterioration of the gel and the flap getting in the way, I will simply have someone use scissors to cut some of the flap away -- this will not harm the mask in any way.

Sore

The gel cushion and forehead gel cushion afford me some alleviation from the pressure of the mask against my face but not completely. The Profile Lite mask gives me less pressure sores and other masks but doesn't prevent all of the pressure sores. Sometimes I will develop sore spots below the corners of my nose, on the sides of my nose and at the bridge of the nose, depending on which way I lean on it while sleeping. Sometimes I will go weeks without any sores and other times they will suddenly start happening and continue for several days. Nothing can really be done about this except to try to readjust the headgear and tilt the mask slightly to remove the pressure from the sore. Still, this mask is better than most I have had in the past.

Obstruction

Unlike the Mirage Vista mask, glasses cannot be worn while using this mask due to the mask going over the bridge of the nose. This can be annoying because there is always something in between your eyes. I usually wear this mask only at night time while I am sleeping and do not need to wear my glasses. This is not really a negative per se because not everyone requires glasses but, if you do wear glasses, then it will become a problem.

Sizes

The Profile Lite mask comes in 6 sizes, depending on the contours of your face and nose, with slightly different prices: Small, Large, Medium, Large/Narrow, Medium/Small and Medium/Wide. I just go with the medium and have no problems. To avoid receiving the wrong size, it is a good idea to be measured by your respiratory therapist for a correct fit.

Where to Buy & Prices

The Profile Lite mask can be purchased from most medical and respiratory supply companies with a multitude of different price ranges. This mask will usually cost you or your insurance about $150 for the mask and headgear. Some insurance companies, like my Medicare, will allow you to receive a mask every 3 months and a headgear every 6 months, so they will split the mask from the headgear and charge you a lower price for the part you are receiving. I found this mask with headgear on sale at Amazon.com for $56 which is probably the lowest you'll find anywhere.

Conclusion

Overall, taking into account the positives and negatives, the Profile Lite Nasal Gel Mask from Philips Respironics is the best mask I have ever worn with my ventilator. No mask will be perfect because people are just not meant to wear plastic and rubber masks for long durations of time -- every mask will have some sort of pressure on our faces that will get sore with time. The best thing is to find a mask that offers the least amount of problems and pressure.

I recommend that the Profile Lite be the first mask tested by people new to wearing ventilator masks because they will probably like this one the best. I went through about half a dozen masks with all sorts of problems before I finally got to this one and I haven't looked back since. I wish this one was available at the time but it didn't even exist until a few years after I started wearing masks. So, if you are new to wearing ventilator masks, have been wearing masks for a while and never tried the Profile Lite or are a respiratory therapist, I highly recommend that you check this mask out first. If it doesn't work out for you, there are dozens and dozens of other options out there and one of them might work as well for you as this one works for me.

Rating: 4/5