Dr. Casaburi completed his undergraduate degree in electrical engineering, and (in 1971) a doctorate in biomedical engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.   He traveled to Los Angeles for post-doctoral bioengineering studies at the University of Southern California.  Five years after joining the Department of Medicine faculty at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, Dr. Casaburi pursued his medical degree at the University of Miami. Returning to Harbor-UCLA, he completed clinical training and rejoined the Division of Respiratory Medicine faculty. He served as Division Chief for six years and currently holds the rank of Distinguished Professor of Medicine at the UCLA School of Medicine.

  Dr. Casaburi established the Rehabilitation Clinical Trials Center in 1999, dedicated to improving COPD patient’s lives. He and co-workers have completed more than 80 clinical research studies, including three major NIH multicenter projects. He has presented over 800 invited lectures on respiratory physiology, exercise science, pulmonary rehabilitation, and COPD management.  He has published more than 430 papers and 360 abstracts. His papers have received over 100,000 citations; his h-index is 107.

  Dr. Casaburi is a Fellow of the American College of Chest Physicians, American Thoracic Society, European Respiratory Society and American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation.  He received the 2020 European Respiratory Society Presidential Award and the 2021 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Pulmonary Rehabilitation Assembly of the ATS.  He is a member of the Board of Directors of the COPD Foundation. He is past-President of the California Thoracic Society.

    He currently serves as co-director of the Exercise Physiology and Respiratory Medicine Institute within the Lundquist Institute for Biomedical Innovation at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center.