Directory of Programs & Services | National Jewish Health

Our Mission

The mission of the Exercise & Performance Breathing Center at National Jewish Health is to empower children and adults of any athletic level to exercise to their fullest capacity and overcome associated medical and psychosocial barriers now and in the future through elite clinical care, discovery, and teaching care providers.

Who We Serve

We cater specifically to people for whom exercise is a part of identity, a source of enjoyment in life, and a means for caring for the body. This includes adolescents and teens that thrive on recreational and competitive sports, collegiate and professional athletes, and adults that continue to push the body. We also serve as a specialty referral center for children with special needs struggling with exercise, older adults with confusion around medical diagnoses related to exercise, and those looking to use exercise as a treatment for disease.

Our Services

Exercise Breathing Center at National Jewish Health The Exercise & Performance Breathing Center at National Jewish Health addresses an unmet need for the evaluation of exercise intolerance and treatment of exercise-related respiratory problems. National Jewish Health possesses the personnel needed to make comprehensive evaluations, a state-of-the-art exercise physiology lab, and innovative on-site therapists to aid in treatment of specific problems and to guide administration of exercise as a medicine.

We have exercise specialists with expertise across the age spectrum, including pulmonologists, cardiologists, allergists, otolaryngologists, speech-language pathologists, and behavioral health providers.

Our team collaborates directly with Rehabilitation Services, Speech Therapy, and Behavioral Health to help our patients achieve their goals. We have ongoing dialogue with specialists in pediatric and adult cardiology, otolaryngology, psychology, performance psychology, endocrinology, and neurology as well as adult pulmonology, cardiology, and performance psychology.

We are one of a few centers in the world that can readily perform continuous laryngoscopy during exercise, a diagnostic procedure for exercise-induced laryngeal obstruction (aka vocal cord dysfunction), which enables the visualization of the upper airway during intense exercise.

We have also invented therapies for this condition including therapeutic laryngoscopy during exercise and the Olin EILOBI breathing techniques.

We work with you to develop individualized plans and help get your players back to top performance.
We can help with education on myths and realities of breathing problems during exercise.
We aim to be a resource for local and national sporting bodies.
We can arrange exercise laboratory tours for coaches.
We offer a 1 week program specifically designed for patients traveling from other states.

We offer a 1 week program to optimize diagnosis and treatment of exercise-related breathing problems including exercised-induced asthma and exercised-induced laryngeal obstruction (aka vocal cord dysfunction).
This multidisciplinary and holistic program can include medical, surgical, and behavioral health providers.
We invite discussion with your physicians and coaches

View EILO/VCD Program

We understand that it is hard to watch a child struggle.
We provide individualized and world-renowned care and a world-reknowned institution.
We provide the highest level of professionalism and expertise.
We offer streamlined testing to maximize value of medical care for your family.

Exercise is important to you. Whether you are a teen, a pro, or an adult looking for an edge or a source of recreation, we listen and work with you to achieve your goals.
We minimize the time it takes to get better. Some conditions, including exercised-induced laryngeal obstruction (aka vocal cord dysfunction), can be improved in a very short period of time.
Several global experts make up the providers of the center. International level athletes trust their care to the National Jewish Health Exercise and Performance Breathing Center

Our Team

The Exercise & Performance Breathing Center at National Jewish Health is led by J. Tod Olin, MD, MSCS, a pediatric pulmonologist with a specific interest in exercise.

Mohammad Dalabih, MD, is a board certified pulmonologist with specific expertise in pulmonary hypertension and special interest in exercise physiology and cardiopulmonary exercise testing.

Lizzie Fan, PA-C, is a physician’s assistant with specific expertise in pediatric exercise intolerance. She processes specific expertise in continuous laryngoscopy during exercise.

M. Patricia George, MD, is a board certified pulmonologist with expertise in pulmonary hypertension and its interface with exercise.

Darlene Kim, MD, is a board certified cardiologist with expertise in right heart failure and its interface with exercise. She presents a specific expertise in heart catheterization during exercise.

Michael Mohning, MD, is a board certified pulmonologist with expertise in lung injury and repair.

J. Tod Olin, MD, MSCS, is a board certified pulmonologist specializing in exercise medicine and is specifically interested in helping children and adults exercise safely and comfortably, whether sick or well, fit or not, toddlers or Olympic-level athletes. His team invented therapeutic laryngoscopy during exercise and the Olin EILOBI breathing techniques.

Zulma Yunt, MD, is a board certified pulmonologist with expertise in lung injury and repair.

Tests We Offer

Cardiopulmonary Exercise Testing
Continuous Laryngoscopy during Exercise
Therapeutic laryngoscopy during Exercise
Exercise-Induced Asthma treadmill testing
Eucapnic Voluntary Hyperventilation for exercised-induced asthma

Additional Information

Learn more about asthma and athletes and how they could be misdiagnosed.

Meet Lexi Beggan, a runner who used therapeutic laryngoscopy during exercise and the Olin EILOBI breathing techniques to perform her best.

My name is Lexi Began. I'm 16. I like running, especially coming downhill. It kind of makes me feel like I'm flying. My identity definitely was as a runner until the pain started. In the races I'd make it a mile or two before the pain would start with this tingling in my arms. It was a severe burning pain in my stomach. By the time I had to drop out I was usually in tears. The doctors couldn't tell me what was going on. They had a few suggestions.

We did a lot of testing. They had no idea or the test results came back negative. There was one doctor who pretty much told me it was all in my head. You kind of start to believe it. It was a tough time. It's kind of hard to look back on considering. I was like really depressed and I didn't really want to. I don't really want to keep on living. My coach saw an article on the Daily Camera and he sent us an email saying do you think it could be this VCD thing? During VCD or vocal cord dysfunction attacks the vocal cords partially or totally close causing terrifying shortness of breath. So when we brought Lexi in we were trying to recreate what was happening in real life. When Lexi's throat was closing it was tremendously difficult to breathe and then downstream of that as she started to breathe faster and faster some of those other symptoms were popping up like the chest pain. It gets to the end and she is spent and he looked ecstatic and he said I think we're gonna be able to help your daughter. I'm confident. I'm confident. We walked out and she just turns and she's bawling. She's like mom I might have an answer.

They might have the answer and it was like somebody gave me my kid back you know. She raced the open race and she raced I think it was 330 girls and she took fifth. She hadn't even been able to finish a race and now she took fifth. For our family you have changed our lives and you have given my daughter hope and her smile has returned and from the bottom of our heart we sincerely thank you. My hope kind of soared. Maybe I could have that dream that I've always hoped for. National Jewish Health has got me back on track. I can't wait for the next season.

Our Specialists

Alicia C. Della Volpe, MD
Elizabeth M. Fan, PA-C
Marjorie Patricia George, MD
Darlene Kim, MD, FACC
Michael P. Mohning, MD
J. Tod Olin, MD, MSCS
Zulma X. Yunt, MD

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