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Leonid Lecca, MD, MSc

Lecturer on Global Health and Social Medicine
617-432-1707

Dr. Lecca is an international expert on global health. He earned his MD from Cayetano Heredia Peruvian University, where also holds his MSc in Epidemiology and Health Management. Last year, he participated in the Global Health Intensive Program at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Dr. Lecca is also the Executive Director at Partners In Health in Peru, and serve as the principal investigator for numerous NIH and Grand Challenges of Canada grants among others, oversees a staff of 250, manages relationships with government, and facilitates the participation of students and research affiliates on various projects at the PIH site and throughout Peru. In the past, Dr. Lecca worked as a technical advisor in infectious disease projects at U.S. Agency for International Development, and was the Human Research Protection Administrator at the Peruvian National Institute of Health. 

Leonid Lecca, MD, MSc is a Lecture in the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School. His research focuses on the epidemiology of tuberculosis, multidrug-resistant tuberculosis, extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, maternal-health, mental health, chronic diseases and community-based approaches to dealing with public health problems, social responsibility, and public health approaches in global health. Current projects include:

  • The discovery and development of innovative TB Diagnostics.
  • Finding and treating unsuspected and resistant TB to reduce hospital transmission.
  • Identification of metabolic factors that control the spectrum of human tuberculosis.
  • Clinical trials for TB, MDR-TB and XDR-TB.
  • Study of community-based family coaching interventions to improve neurodevelopment in at-risk children.
  • An innovative interdisciplinary approaches to sustainable airborne infection control.
  • Clinical and programmatic outcomes of a community-based antiretroviral therapy program for HIV positive patients.
Whole genome sequencing identifies bacterial factors affecting transmission of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis in a high-prevalence setting.
Authors: Authors: Dixit A, Freschi L, Vargas R, Calderon R, Sacchettini J, Drobniewski F, Galea JT, Contreras C, Yataco R, Zhang Z, Lecca L, Kolokotronis SO, Mathema B, Farhat MR.
Sci Rep
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Asthma and atopy prevalence are not reduced among former tuberculosis patients compared with controls in Lima, Peru.
Authors: Authors: Byrne AL, Marais BJ, Mitnick CD, Garden FL, Lecca L, Contreras C, Yauri Y, Garcia F, Marks GB.
BMC Pulm Med
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Emotional Experiences of Mothers Living With HIV and the Quest for Emotional Recovery: A Qualitative Study in Lima, Peru.
Authors: Authors: Contreras C, Rumaldo N, Lindeborg MM, Mendoza M, Chen DR, Saldaña O, Wong M, Muñoz M, Schrier E, Lecca L, Castro A, Shin S, Nelson AK.
J Assoc Nurses AIDS Care
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Using Changes in Weight-for-Age z Score to Predict Effectiveness of Childhood Tuberculosis Therapy.
Authors: Authors: Chiang SS, Park S, White EI, Friedman JF, Cruz AT, Del Castillo H, Lecca L, Becerra MC, Seddon JA.
J Pediatric Infect Dis Soc
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Dynamics of Treatment Supporters and Patients Starting HIV Therapy in Lima, Peru.
Authors: Authors: Harishankar K, Wong M, Saldana O, Santa Cruz J, Lecca L, Munoz M, Nelson AK, Castro A, Shin S.
J Int Assoc Provid AIDS Care
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Tuberculosis household accompaniment to improve the contact management cascade: A prospective cohort study.
Authors: Authors: Yuen CM, Millones AK, Contreras CC, Lecca L, Becerra MC, Keshavjee S.
PLoS One
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Feasibility of the string test for tuberculosis diagnosis in children between 4 and 14 years old.
Authors: Authors: Tafur KT, Coit J, Leon SR, Pinedo C, Chiang SS, Contreras C, Calderon R, Mendoza MJ, Lecca L, Franke MF.
BMC Infect Dis
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Increased Doses Lead to Higher Drug Exposures of Levofloxacin for Treatment of Tuberculosis.
Authors: Authors: Peloquin CA, Phillips PPJ, Mitnick CD, Eisenach K, Patientia RF, Lecca L, Gotuzzo E, Gandhi NR, Butler D, Diacon AH, Martel B, Santillan J, Hunt KR, Vargas D, von Groote-Bidlingmaier F, Seas C, Dianis N, Moreno-Martinez A, Kaur P, Horsburgh CR.
Antimicrob Agents Chemother
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Efficacy and Safety of High-Dose Rifampin in Pulmonary Tuberculosis. A Randomized Controlled Trial.
Authors: Authors: Velásquez GE, Brooks MB, Coit JM, Pertinez H, Vargas Vásquez D, Sánchez Garavito E, Calderón RI, Jiménez J, Tintaya K, Peloquin CA, Osso E, Tierney DB, Seung KJ, Lecca L, Davies GR, Mitnick CD.
Am J Respir Crit Care Med
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Genotyping Multidrug-Resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis from Primary Sputum and Decontaminated Sediment with an Integrated Microfluidic Amplification Microarray Test.
Authors: Authors: Linger Y, Knickerbocker C, Sipes D, Golova J, Franke M, Calderon R, Lecca L, Thakore N, Holmberg R, Qu P, Kukhtin A, Murray MB, Cooney CG, Chandler DP.
J Clin Microbiol
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