Breathe with MD, Inc.

06/16/2026

Too often a weak, ineffective cough is a neglected aspect of care for someone living with neuromuscular breathing weakness. Please watch the short clip our friends at Team Titin shared.

Changes in the TTN gene may result in muscle weakness or heart health problems, both of which can affect breathing.This is an excerpt from the webinar record...

06/13/2026

Participants in our third annual, “Breathing Muscle Weakness 101,” online course received notification of the fourth lesson’s availability yesterday evening. They have been learning about the mechanics of breathing muscle weakness, evaluation and testing, mechanical ventilation, and now cough. Every two to three weeks until August 29, a new lesson is available in the introductory level course.

It is not too late to enroll in this free educational opportunity for those living with Neuromuscular Disease (NMD) and their loved ones. Participants can log on anytime to get equipped with key knowledge to help them receive better respiratory care, which can lead to improved quality of life.

Learn more/enroll here: https://forms.gle/LAYNMFYTBJAwpSEZ6

06/11/2026

Consumable respiratory supplies within our existing inventory are free to those who reside in the United States of America (USA), live with a Neuromuscular Disease (NMD), and are in need. See our inventory/access the request form at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfosrp73EU4XVKrtKCEAPvUR_RQ3MbHrbU6yKnr4882pxNILw/viewform.

06/08/2026

Participants in our third annual introductory level, “Breathing Muscle Weakness 101,” online course have been learning about the mechanics of breathing muscle weakness, evaluation and testing, and mechanical ventilation. Every two to three weeks until August 29, a new lesson is available in the course.

It is not too late to enroll in this free educational opportunity for those living with Neuromuscular Disease (NMD) and their loved ones. Participants can log on anytime to get equipped with key knowledge to help them receive better respiratory care, which can lead to improved quality of life.

Learn more/enroll here: https://forms.gle/LAYNMFYTBJAwpSEZ6

06/06/2026

“A useful way to think about the care of patients with neuromuscular respiratory disease is to break down the neuromuscular system into three areas of function (18, 19): 1. Ventilatory function, which is primarily dependent on inspiratory muscles. 2. Cough function, which is determined by inspiratory and expiratory muscles as well as the muscles controlling the glottis. 3. Swallowing and airway protection, which are determined by the muscles of the glottis. The clinical evaluation for patients with known and suspected neuromuscular respiratory disease focuses on these three functions of the respiratory system.”

Reference: https://www.annualreviews.org/content/journals/10.1146/annurev-med-043021-013620

06/03/2026

Have you been looking for a sign you should enroll?

It is not too late to enroll in this free educational opportunity for those living with Neuromuscular Disease (NMD) and their loved ones. Participants can log on anytime to get equipped with key knowledge to help them receive better respiratory care, which can lead to improved quality of life.

Learn more/enroll here: https://forms.gle/LAYNMFYTBJAwpSEZ6

06/02/2026

Periodically, we get asked about the use of diaphragmatic pacing for breathing muscle weakness in Neuromuscular Disease (NMD) and if this may be an alternative to bi-level noninvasive ventilation. Here is what recent medical literature has to say on this.

“Diaphragmatic pacing is the use of electrical stimulation to the phrenic nerves to cause diaphragm contraction. This has been used in select individuals with chronic respiratory failure who have an intact phrenic nerve function but an inadequate central drive (e.g., congenital central hypoventilation syndrome) or during the recovery period from a high-level spinal cord injury (73,74). An intact phrenic nerve is vital for the success of this treatment option.

Two recent studies showed that diaphragmatic pacing can be an alternative treatment to using mechanical ventilation in these groups of patients (74,75). While diaphragmatic pacing has been used in select cases of NMD, the consensus and recent studies have not shown any clear survival benefit in NMD and may be harmful (76-78).”

Reference: Akpa, Bimaje, et al. “Respiratory issues and current management in Neuromuscular Diseases: A narrative review.” Journal of Thoracic Disease, vol. 16, no. 9, Sept. 2024, pp. 6292–6307, https://doi.org/10.21037/jtd-23-1931.

Full article PDF: https://jtd.amegroups.org/article/view/91050/pdf

05/30/2026

Participants in our third annual introductory level, “Breathing Muscle Weakness 101,” online course received their third lesson yesterday evening. They have been learning about the mechanics of breathing muscle weakness, evaluation and testing, and now mechanical ventilation. Every two to three weeks until August 29, a new lesson is available in the course.

It is not too late to enroll in this free educational opportunity for those living with Neuromuscular Disease (NMD) and their loved ones. Participants can log on anytime to get equipped with key knowledge to help them receive better respiratory care, which can lead to improved quality of life.

Learn more/enroll here: https://forms.gle/LAYNMFYTBJAwpSEZ6

05/29/2026

“Chronic respiratory failure is the most common cause of morbidity and mortality for individuals with neuromuscular disease (NMD). While the onset of respiratory failure in the acute setting is well-defined, the onset of chronic respiratory failure is often insidious and its evolution is poorly recognized and described. Presenting first as nocturnal hypoventilation, identifying this change is subtle clinically and often depends on the patient’s and family’s reporting of symptoms and the clinician having a high level of concern and suspicion.”

Article quoted: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10657685/

05/28/2026

Consumable respiratory supplies within our existing inventory are free to those who reside in the United States of America (USA), live with a Neuromuscular Disease (NMD), and are in need.

See our inventory/access the request form at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfosrp73EU4XVKrtKCEAPvUR_RQ3MbHrbU6yKnr4882pxNILw/viewform.