Wow, 7 weeks pass so quickly and I have absolutely loved to
be in the city this summer. Even though my research project presented me with a
lot of hurdles and I wish I would have been able to do more, I feel that the
clinical immersion part of my experience has been totally invaluable. It has
given me the sneak peak into medicine I always wanted.
Week 7 was also the week when everything would happen for my
HUVEC project. Tuesday and Wednesday I ran two experiments attempting to
capture HUVEC cells using a surface antigen antibody. Very excited to finally
do some work! However, I wish I had more time to troubleshoot.
On my very last day I went to both Labor and Delivery and
Cardiothoracic surgery! In L&D I saw a very small baby getting delivered
through a cesarean. Even though the baby was 34 weeks and should have been a
relatively uncomplicated preterm birth, something was preventing it from
growing normally in the uterus and as a result he weighed less than two pounds
when delivered.
In cardiothoracic surgery I observed Dr Girardi (appeared on
the Letterman show this week!) perform a heart valve replacement and the repair
of a large aortic aneurysm. These were by far the most intense and fascinating
surgeries I have observed this summer! For the second surgery the patient was
on complete bypass and in full circulatory arrest for parts of the operation. I
got to see the surgeon replace an entire aortic arch with a branched artificial
graft!
This weeks was also the time for our final group meeting and
dinner. Delicious and very enjoyable!
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