About

The BREAThE Program specializes in treating patients who have difficulty breathing due to muscle weakness, obesity, COPD, and severe sleep apnea, among other conditions leading to chronic breathlessness, poor sleep quality, ineffective cough, and respiratory failure. We support breathing through multiple modalities including, but not limited to, the use of non-invasive ventilation, home mechanical ventilation, oxygen and alternatives to positive airway pressure (PAP) therapy. We work alongside patients’ existing team of providers to ensure that care is collaborative and holistic. We take care of patients who are admitted to UPMC Presbyterian Hospital, as well as in our outpatient clinic.

Our team understands complex pulmonary physiology and can assist with further evaluation and management of advanced therapies. We believe optimal treatment requires a personalized approach with patient and caregiver education. We are attuned to the importance of the impact that breathing difficulties can have on sleep quality and are focused on optimizing patients’ breathing at night and during the day to improve patients’ quality of life.

Some common conditions that benefit from the BREAThE program expertise include:

  • Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)
  • Muscular dystrophy
  • Pompe Disease
  • Spinal Muscular Atrophy
  • Spina Bifida
  • Diaphragm paralysis
  • Kyphoscoliosis
  • Spinal cord injuries
  • Obesity hypoventilation
  • COPD
  • Cerebral palsy
  • Spastic quadriplegia
  • Congenital Central Hypoventilation Syndrome
  • Myasthenia Gravis
  • People with tracheostomies

Our goal is to help patients with these and other related conditions to sleep better at night, feel more rested during the day, and to prevent the need for hospitalization.

“People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” ~ Teddy Roosevelt

Meet the Team

Our Doctors

Patrick J. Strollo, Jr., MD

Dr. Strollo is Professor of Medicine and Clinical and Translational Science at the University of Pittsburgh. He is the Chairman of Medicine at the VA Pittsburgh Health System and Vice Chair of Medicine for Veterans Affairs at the University of Pittsburgh. He received his undergraduate degree in Chemistry from Washington College and his MD from the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. He is certified by the by the American Board of Internal Medicine in Internal Medicine, Pulmonary Diseases, and Sleep Medicine.

He has been an active member of the American Thoracic Society and the American Academy of Sleep Medicine for over 25 years. He served as President of the AASM 2010 -2011.

His research has involved team science with an emphasis on translational investigations. His work along with his collaborators has focused on three broad areas of investigation: 1) New strategies / tools for the diagnosis of sleep disordered breathing, 2) Management of sleep disordered breathing with positive pressure therapy and other novel treatments and 3) The impact of sleep disordered breathing on cardiovascular function. Dr. Strollo has over 200 publications to include the NEJM and JAMA. He has been continuously funded by the NIH since 2004.

Jennifer L. Newitt, MD

Dr. Newitt is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh in the Department of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine. She received her M.D. with a Distinction in Research from Albany Medical College. She completed a combined Internal Medicine-Pediatrics residency at Indiana University followed by Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep medicine fellowships at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. She earned a Certificate in Clinical Research from the University of Pittsburgh. Her passion is providing care to patients (and their families) with chronic respiratory failure and neuromuscular diseases.

She is an active member of the CHEST Home-based Mechanical Ventilation and Neuromuscular Disease network and enjoys teaching and collaborating with others to improve care of complex patients in the hospital and community settings.

Her current research study is investigating the benefit of a personalized care approach to initiation of non-invasive ventilation.

Blair Stone, MD

Dr. Blair Stone is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh within the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine. She treats patients both at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and the VA Pittsburgh Health System.

She graduated medical school from West Virginia University and completed her Internal Medicine residency at UPMC Presbyterian Shadyside where she stayed on to complete her Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine fellowships. Her clinical and scholarly focus is treating patients with sleep disordered breathing who require advanced non-invasive ventilation and critical care medicine. She has a passion for education and has completed a certificate in Medical Education. She enjoys teaching complicated concepts through interactive sessions, utilizing multiple teaching modalities.

She works as a part of a team of educators, researchers, and clinicians to prepare trainees to recognize and care for complex patients with hypoventilation both in the inpatient and outpatient setting.

Collaborators

We work within a multidisciplinary team of nurses, respiratory therapists, and sleep technicians to deliver high quality personalized care. Our physicians also round on patients in the hospital along with a team of specialized advanced practice providers to ensure continuity of care both in the inpatient and outpatient setting.