Clemson University senior double majoring in biochemistry and psychology Yashvi Patel spent the past summer at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida completing a clinical research internship focused on stroke treatment.
Thrombolytics, which are administered when someone suffers a stroke, are clot-busting drugs used to restore blood flow to the brain. Though we know to provide thrombolytics as treatment for a stroke, many questions still remain about the drugs.
At the Mayo Clinic, under the guidance of Dr. William Freema, Yashvi reviewed patient data in neurocritical care to analyze patterns related to stroke treatment. Her main project for the summer focused on how a particular thrombolytic affects patients who have suffered from a stroke, analyzing how soon patients can begin physical movement such as sitting on the edge of the bed, standing or walking after having a stroke and receiving the drug.
In addition to her main project, Yashvi was able to experience other features the Mayo Clinic had to offer, shadowing other departments such as neuropsychological testing, a double-liver heart transplant, radiation oncology, cutting-edge MRI and radiation therapy machines, and ion therapy
“It’s such a different environment and the caliber of research is incredible,” she said.
Read more about Yashvi and her past summer internship, involvement on campus and DNA repair research in Dr. Michael Sehorn’s lab in the Clemson News article “Clemson student’s research journey spans DNA repair to stroke care.”
