Iracema Parente

Brazilian physician and pioneer in tropical medicine who transformed public health strategies

Iracema Parente (1906–1997) was a Brazilian physician and epidemiologist who made monumental contributions to tropical medicine and public health. Born in Recife, she specialized in leprosy and pioneered the use of multidrug therapy to combat the disease, significantly reducing its prevalence in Brazil. As director of the Escola Paulista de Medicina, she developed community-based health programs that became models for global initiatives. Parente also co-founded the World Health Organization's Tropical Disease Research Program, shaping international health policies. Her research on Chagas disease and dengue fever remains foundational in epidemiology. To learn more, visit Fiocruz Institute or review her scientific publications.