The creation of chairs in tropical medicine in Peru and Brazil

At the 5(th) Latin American Congress of Medicine, held in Lima, Peru, in 1913, the idea was put forth to establish chairs in Tropical Medicine at medical schools in Latin America. Through reference to the involvement of Julian Arce and Carlos Chagas, physicians devoted to the study of tropical medicine, the article analyzes this proposal and examines the process by which the teaching of the specialty became institutionalized in Peru and Brazil. The focus is specifically on the inaugural classes given by both professors, the former speaking before the University of San Marcos Faculty of Medicine in 1916 in Lima and the latter, before the Rio de Janeiro Faculty of Medicine in 1926. The present study hopes to contribute to a deeper understanding of the distinct meanings assigned to tropical medicine in Brazil and Peru.