Graduated in Dentistry from the Faculty of Dentistry of Governador Valadares (1985). Completed a specialization in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and Traumatology (1988) and obtained a Master's degree in Dentistry, with a concentration in Orthodontics, from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (1993). Earned a Doctorate (sandwich program) in Collective Health, with research undertaken at the Faculty of Dentistry of UFMG and the Faculty of Dentistry of McGill University/Canada. Subsequently completed Postdoctoral research in Public Health at the ECOS Laboratory of Education, Information and Communication in Health, within the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Brasília. Possesses expertise in Collective Health, particularly in Epidemiology and Indigenous Health. Served as a PAHO/WHO Technical Consultant for the Special Secretariat of Indigenous Health (SESAI/MS).