Critical Bioethics in Latin America: Epistemological Foundations and Implications for Cardiothoracic Health

This paper examines the emergence of critical bioethics in Latin America, with attention to its genealogical origins, epistemological frameworks, and relevance to health and thoracic disease. Using a qualitative design with key and credible informants, the study triangulates interview data and documentary analysis to identify tensions between universalist bioethical principles and Latin American socio-medical realities. Results show that inequality, interculturality, and structural vulnerabilities shape bioethical debates in thoracic and cardiothoracic care. Findings suggest that critical bioethics is both a theoretical approach and a practical framework aimed at decolonial, social, and clinical justice in contexts of health disparities.