Nasal pillow chaped nose/nares

I have redness and rough skin around the bottom of nose and upper lip too! I use a nasal pillow just like the one your described. I have been using C-PAP for many years. I have tried many masks that simply did not work for me so I stuck with the nasal pillow. I use various brands of baby diaper rash creams. Very small amount is used. I look for natural brands. If I consistent it does help but sometimes I am too tired at night to fool with it. During the day I use Neutrogena Hydro Boost gel cream for extra dry skin with hyaluronic acid. It will burn when I first put it on for about 10 minutes. After that the redness looks alot better. They also make a night time cream that I have used in the mornings as well.

My advice, and that's all it is, is to keep the cushion/pillow clean, properly fitted (not too tight against the face, and also the 'right' cushion [sometimes you have to try other headgears and masks], and keep the face clean where it rests.

For contact sores, I use Barriere Cream (Wellskin) which is widely available on line and at your drug stores.

Some have found that foam or cloth ridge pads placed around the perimeters of masks really helps. I don't know anything about that, but it might be worth some research and trials. If our hosts won't mind the reference to another forum, try asking at apneaboard.com.

I agree with keeping the nasal pad clean and change to a new one as needed. Also, if my head band is too tight I find I get irritation.

I used the nasal pillows for as long as I could tolerate the irritation you are experiencing. I switched to a nasal mask that covered the entire nose. It was much better than the nose pillows but a couple of weeks in I started with a similar irritation, this time on the bridge and sides of my nose. I tried all kinds
of creams, ointments, etc. without success and then realized that it was the silicon that was the problem and I am allergic to the material. I found on Amazon (of course) a simple cotton cover (Snugz) for the nose cushion and it changed everything. It’s a bit pricy but we’ll worth the cost. With regular washing one cover easily lasts a month. I have tried others available on line but there is no comparison to this little knit wonder. Problem solved!

Thanks for the ideas. I am having a minor excoriated red area on one side, mostly around the contact area. I don't wan't to give up on the pillows because they are working great overall.

Thanks for your thoughts. I was thinking it might be a little snug, also I tend to have it on 9 plus hours at night, so that is a fairly long time.

Great tip, I will research the Snugs and have a nasal mask I might try a few nights for relief.