A 60-month-old female with a congenital, complex, multisystem phenotype was diagnosed with MELAS/Leigh overlap syndrome due to variant m.13513G>A in ND5<i>.</i> Brainstem involvement resulted in dysphagia, dysarthria, and respiratory failure with recurrent episodes of aspiration, respiratory insufficiency, desaturations, lack of respiratory drive, hypercapnia, and pneumonia. The gene discussed is MT-ND5; the disease is respiratory failure.