CHS Welcomes New Faculty – Meet Dr. Cesar Melo-Silva

Published September 16, 2026
By Darlene Muguiro
UTEP College of Health Sciences

This fall, the College of Health Sciences is welcoming several new faculty members. We are pleased to present the second profile featuring Dr. Cesar Melo-Silva, associate professor of Physical Therapy. Dr. Melo-Silva comes to UTEP from the School of Medicine at the University of Brasilia, Brazil. His clinical focus as a practicing physical therapist was in pulmonary rehabilitation. He received a master’s degree in health sciences and a PhD in medical sciences, with a focus on pulmonary rehabilitation and respiratory applied physiology, from the University of Brasilia. He also completed a postdoc fellowship in pathophysiology of the upper airways at Laval University in Quebec.

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Like many of his peers, Dr. Cesar Melo-Silva says that he was drawn to UTEP and El Paso by the opportunities to pursue research in a unique binational, bicultural border environment. In particular, he was excited by the prospect of expanding upon his already well-developed program focusing on rehabilitation of chronic pulmonary disease patients.

“There are so many opportunities for research here in the U.S., as well as relationships with industry,” he said. “When I saw the job announcement, I began looking at the research infrastructure at UTEP and in the Department of Physical Therapy and Movement Sciences, and I was very impressed.”

While at UTEP for his interview, Melo-Silva was struck by the demeanor of the students in the Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) program, who he says asked very thoughtful questions about his area of clinical practice and research interests.

“I gave a lecture about a very specific topic, and the students got the idea and were asking me really good questions,” he said. “When I went to the classrooms to talk to them, they continued to be very engaged. They asked me about my teaching philosophy and international experiences, and what I could bring to the table.”  

Melo-Silva is eager to begin organizing his laboratory, which he says will help fill one of the missing cogs of the UTEP DPT program. His populations of interest include individuals with chronic respiratory conditions, including emphysema, pulmonary fibrosis and asthma, as well as individuals who have undergone thoracic surgery. He says that in El Paso, the prevalence of emphysema, in particular, is 50% higher than the national average, due to factors including smoking habits as well as environmental conditions, among others.     

“We have two major problems here on the border with regard to emphysema and pulmonary fibrosis. Not only is the prevalence of these diseases higher, but the mortality rate for these patients is also higher when compared to Hispanics who don’t live on the border. This provides a great opportunity to serve these populations,” he said.

Melo-Silva says that he hopes to develop interventions that focus on improving chronic pulmonary patients’ capacity for exercise, which in the long-term, will positively impact their quality of life.  

“I’m really interested in investigating the pulmonary and extrapulmonary factors involved in exercise limitations among these patients,” he said. “They’re not only not going to the gym, but they’re also getting short of breath when doing things like taking a shower or putting on their clothes. Improving their capacity to exercise will ultimately allow them to move better and become more integrated in the general community.” 

Melo-Silva is currently recruiting students who are interested in joining his laboratory, and already has a plan for the lab’s work over the next several years.

“We will deal with complex research and data, with these patients,” he said. “We will also look at developing wearable technology that will assess their capacity for exercise while they’re completing their daily activities of living. It will be a very fun and good environment to work in.”

For more information about Dr. Melo-Silva’s research and laboratory opportunities, please email him at cmeloesilva@utep.edu

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Go Miners!