Ismael Cosío Villegas. Main actions against tuberculosis in Mexico, 1929–1965

Abstract

The article is a biographical study centered around the professional development of the Mexican pulmonologist Ismael Cosío Villegas (1902–1985), through which we address and understand tuberculosis care practices in Mexico during the first half of the 20th century. Important health actions are owed to Ismael Cosío Villegas in the fight against this disease, so his contribution to medicine is recognized for the work dedicated to the care of tubercu-losis patients and respiratory diseases. The biography proposed here derives mainly from the interview made to Dr. Cosío Villegas by the ‘Oral History’ program in 1977 and from the documents related to his professional career. The purpose of this study is to demonstrate the incidence that Ismael Cosío Villegas had in 20th century Mexican medicine.