Patent ID: 8393324

Claim:
A face mask having a generally conical, symmetric shell with a narrowed, forward portion of the shell, a wider, rear portion of the shell, a tube connector at a top end of the shell and a rim peripheral to a bottom edge of the shell, which rim is sealingly connected with an inflatable cushion adapted to sealingly engage a face of a person for application of a volume of gas under positive pressure containing gases to said person, the improvement comprising a forward extension outward and upward from the shell consisting essentially of a vertical surface and a horizontal surface located on the forward portion of the shell along an axial plane of the shell and a rear extension outward and upward from the shell consisting essentially of a vertical surface and a horizontal surface located on the rear portion of the shell along an axial plane of the shell, where said extensions each have a horizontal width equal to or less than a horizontal width of the tube connector so that a difference in the forward effective pressing elevation and the rear effective pressing elevation is adapted to provide that when a user grasps the forward extension with a thumb and the rear extension with a forefinger, said user's distal ends of their radius and ulna bones are substantially in vertical alignment and extend essentially normal to said axial plane and the horizontal surface of the rear extension is adapted to receive downward pressure of a user's forefinger of a user's hand and the horizontal surface of the forward extension is adapted to receive downward pressure of a user's thumb of the same hand, whereby the vertical surface of the rear extension is adapted to receive horizontal and forward pressure of a user's forefinger of a user's hand defining a rear effective pressing elevation from said rim and the vertical surface of the forward extension is adapted to receive horizontal and rearward pressure of a user's thumb of the same hand defining a forward effective pressing elevation from said rim.