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Foundation News

S.C.A.R.F. Students Show Their Research Projects

Updated: Sep 28, 2019

07.23.2019: Isha

(ethics not present)

(minitopic not present)

(dont have groupme)


07.22.2019: Jermey

(ethics not present)

(minitopic not present)


07.22.2019: Avisha

Avisha’s mini health care presentation was about a 28-year-old female who had palpitations, chest pain, nausea, dizziness for 5-6 minutes, several attacks in the past couple weeks, diaphoretic, occasional diarrhea, and felt like she might die. Everything was within range in her physical exam and vitals. She was ultimately diagnosed with a panic attack. A panic attack is the abrupt onset of intense fear or discomfort that reaches a peak within minutes.


Avisha’s ethics topic was about the rising controversy of negative claims on the popular review sight Yelp. Reviews that now are surfacing on the internet could make or break a business and could lead to lawsuits and ultimately lead to the closure of a company.


07.19.2019: Amani

(ethics not present)

(minitopic not present)

(dont have groupme)


07.18.2019: Shalin

(ethics not present)

(minitopic not present)


07.18.2019: Rediat

Rediat's ethics topic involved whether Schools have the right to monitor students social media and their school email accounts. In her specific example, a baseball player, Robert, has a large social media following and he tweets/posts various things. He tweets that he’s skipping class. The school then goes through his school email account to find that his tutor has been helping him cheat. Robert is placed on academic probation and his tutor is fired

Rediats healthcare topic involved a 16 y/o male with myalgia, fatigue, sore throat, loss of appetite, and nausea. No vomiting. His Girlfriend had similar symptoms that lasted a few weeks. During his physical exam, he was found having lymphadenopathy and pharyngitis with exudates and petechiae at junction of hard and soft palates. Soft, non-tender abdomen with mild hepatosplenomegaly, maculopapular rash.


07.16.2019: Sritulasi Alokam

Sritulasi's healthcare topic revolved around Systemic Lupus Erythematosus. This is an autoimmune disease where the immune system attacks normal, healthy tissue. Differential diagnoses were Sarcoidosis and Polymyositis. The final diagnosis was Systemic Lupus Erythematosus due to all of the symptoms of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus aligning with her issues.


07.16.2019: Aashna

(ethics not present)

(minitopic not present)


07.15.2019: Shravi

(ethics not present)

(minitopic not present)


07.15.2019: Riya Shah

(ethics not present)

Riya's healthcare topic revolved around menopause. Menopause marks the end of a woman's menstrual cycle and is typically diagnosed after 12 months without a menstrual period. Differential diagnoses were early stages of pregnancy and hyperthyroidism. The final diagnosis was menopause because of her age (she was 50 years old) and her last menstural period being six months ago.


07.12.2019: Nisha

(ethics not present)

(minitopic not present)


07.12.2019: Mahima

Mahima presented on Cholecystitis, a healthcare condition in which there is inflammation of the gallbladder. Symptoms include pain in right upper quadrant of abdomen, emesis (vomiting), nausea, and pain radiating towards shoulder. These symptoms generally occur after a meal. Some risk factors are diabetes, obesity, and old age. Women are at a greater risk because rates of gallstone are two to three times higher among women than men. Cholecystitis can be diagnosed by a CT scan and abdominal ultrasound. Treatment for cholecystitis depends on its severity.


Mahima's ethics topic revolved around the pros and cons of prenatal diagnosis. Prenatal diagnosis and parental choice has many unique perspectives. In January of 1973, Roe V. Wade ensured the right to women to have safe and legal abortion. Currently, our legislature is re-evaluating Roe V. Wade. In 2015, Ohio legislature makes it illegal to terminate a pregnancy to avoid giving birth to a baby with Down Syndrome. In May of 2019, Alabama legislature bans all abortions in the state except when "abortion is necessary in order to prevent a serious health risk". Mahima led a discussion pertaining to Ohio and Alabama legislature and whether they had the right to do so.


07.12.2019: Jordyn

(ethics not present)

(minitopic not present)


07.11.2019: Prachi

Prachi presented on a case study where the patient had ulcerative colitis, which is a chronic bowel disease that causes inflammation in the digestive tract. The patient had loose, watery, stools that were streaked with blood and mucus. He had abdominal pain and weight loss over the past three weeks. His vitals and physical examinations were normal. Prachi's ethics topic discussed the struggle Bryson, the External Relations Vice President, faced during his term. He began to shift his focus to public relations and assigned his state-level duties to his three-student staff. This discussion explored how ethical it was to place this burden on the staff and how it can be better managed.


07.11.2019: Kyra Nelson

Kyra's healthcare topic was colon cancer. This is a cancer found in the digestive tract, can be treated by chemotherapy. Differential diagnoses were Gl parasite, Hemorrhoids, and Irritable bowel syndrome. The final diagnosis is colon cancer, due to the family history and rectal bleeding. 

Kyra's presented on gestational surrogacy. This is where the mother has no genetic tie to the child. In some cases, the surrogate gets attached, and wishes to keep the child. A discussion was held on if gestational surrogacy is moral.


07.09.2019: Rohit Katakam

Rohit discussed a case study of a patient who suffered from a TIA, also known as a mini stroke. TIA has the same symptoms and causes as a stroke, except the attack itself lasts around 15 minutes. These symptoms include slurred speech, right facial drooping and numbness, and weakness in the right hand. TIA may be a warning sign for a stroke later on.

Rohit’s ethics discussion was based on a case of a worker being fired for substance abuse, and later asking to be reinstated. This topic explored what actions would be ethical in the workplace when someone does something wrong.


07.08.2019: Aneesa Goyal

Aneesa’s healthcare mini topic was focused on AMS, also known as altered mental status. She discussed a patient who recently had surgery, and the physician was called in because of seizures. The main sign she focused on was the patient’s hepatomegaly, which is an enlarged liver, and her final diagnosis was alcohol withdrawal. This affects the mental state of a patient, causing them to feel irritable and anxious, and leads to other physical effects, such as; nausea, sweating, and insomnia.

Aneesa also led a discussion in how physicians should proceed when they encounter a patient who they see is harmed by an ethnically different form of treatment. She also discussed how to go about a way to determine whether the patient is being abused by these practices, or whether the “harm” they see is normal, without alienating the cultural practices of the patient.


07.08.2019: Ananya Parimi

Ananya presented a case study about a 6 year old male that was diagnosed with a hereditary disease called hemophilia, which is a condition where your body isn’t able to produce platelets that help with clotting. Hemophilia could lead to serious internal bleeding and constant bleeding if not treated or caught early.

Ananya also led a discussion about the pro’s and con’s of child immigration and whether the US has a moral obligation to treat all of these unknown scared children coming into the country. Ananya and the other SCARF students discussed potential solutions to this rising epidemic and many new ideas were brought to the table.


07.05.2019: Elizabeth Chong

Elizabeth discussed the blurring of private and public opinion through twitter. She led a discussion pertaining to Rashard Mendenhall's tweets against celebrating the death of Osama Bin Laden and whether his sponsor, Champion, had the right to drop him after the fact.

(healthcare mini topic not present)


07.05.2019: Sanya Goyal

Sanya presented a case on a cough and shortness of breath. The diagnosis for the patient was a pulmonary embolism. She talked about how the patient’s symptoms were so similar to the symptoms of a pulmonary embolism, and about the treatment options for the health issue.

Sanya discussed social media struggles with teenage students in school. She made a discussion about how social media posts can affect a student’s professionalism, and how it can damage their reputation. The discussion included how a student was conflicted about exposing his friend who was seen acting inappropriately in a video on the internet.


07.02.2019: Rushang Mittal

Rushang's mini topic dealt with a patient suffering from malignant hypertension. Malignant hypertension is characterized by extremely high blood pressure (180/120 or greater). If left untreated, malignant hypertension can result in organ damage.

Rushang's healthcare topic dealt with the ethics of determining the best candidate for a heart transplant. Rushang led a discussion dealing with whether those who continue to practice unhealthy habits such as smoking and eating poorly should be prioritized over other patients who practice healthier habits due to them being on the waiting list longer.


07.02.2019: Jatan Anand

Jatan presented a case about a patient who was experiencing severe anterior chest pain that radiated to the back.  The patient also had unequal BP and pulse on each arm, and a history of long-standing hypertension.  Based on the signs and symptoms, he diagnosed the patient with an Aortic Dissection, which occurs when an inner layer of the aorta tears, and blood surges through. Jatan then led a discussion about Apple's suppliers and questionable labor practices.  Child labor, consumer memory of unethical corporations, how should Apple go about changing their practices in third world countries, etc. were all discussed from different view points. 


07.01.2019: Nikhith Rao

(not sure what the final diagnosis is)

Nikith's ethics presentation discussed vaccine shortages and fair methods for distributing vaccinations. During the discussion, Nikith led a conversation discussing the merits of both first come first serve as a distribution method and a lottery system as a method of distribution for vaccines. The group also discussed the role medical necessity should play with vaccine distribution.

07.01.2019: Rohan Shah

Rohan presented a case study where the diagnosis was pancreatic cancer, which can be a very critical condition for patients and affects thousands of people. Pancreatic cancer is most dangerous if it metastasizes, which cancers often do. Metastasis was a topic Rohan talked about, and is when a cancer spreads to other areas of the body.

Rohan's ethics topic discussed the practice tech companies often use to get access to individuals' private information. Companies like Facebook use cookies to access users' information to provide data to advertisers, and this practice is often called into question, leading to an important discussion about privacy rights in the technological world.


06.27.2019: Avi Anand

Avi's ethics presentation discussed the role of parents when deciding college education and career choices. (details of ethics presentation not given)


Avi's mini-topic presentation discussed the neurological disease, Alzheimers. Alzheimers is a irreversible brain disorder which slowly destroys a person's mental capability to the point where a person can't even perform basic tasks.


06.27.2019: Grace Cotteleer

During her mini-topic presentation, Grace spoke about a patient having a painless lump in her right breast. The patient was diagnosed with breast cancer. Breast cancer occurs due to the uncontrolled growth of breast cells which can form a tumor.

(ethics missing)


06.27.2019: Sophia Nguyen


Sopia's healthcare topic was about hypertension induced pregnancy, and how women should be aware that when they are undergoing a pregnancy, their heart along with the rest of their organs will work harder.

Sophia's ethics topic shed light on the first amendment regarding gender and sexuality stereotypes. It conveys how many people especially in America have gotten used to using these topics as slang, even though they soon won’t be tolerated anymore.


06.25.2019: Samvrit Punyapu

Samvrit presented on a case study where the patient had hematuria (blood in the urine) and pains in the lower back and abdomen, the patient was diagnosed with polycystic kidney disease. Polycystic Kidney Disease is a disease in which a cluster of cysts form around your kidneys and enlarge it over time. This can lead to blood in the urine, side and back pains as well as masses in the flanks of the abdomen.

His Ethics topic revolved around copyright issues having to do with the song Blurred Lines. The song Blurred Lines by Pharell Williams and Robin Thicke sounds very similar to the song Got To Give It Up by Marvin Gaye. After Marvin Gayes family filed lawsuits, they won over 7.4 million in damages.


06.25.2019: Josh


Josh presented a case study involving a 25 year-old male comes into the ER complaining of generalized abdominal pain and decreased appetite for 4 days. This was accompinied by frequent urination, nausea, and vomiting. All physical examinations were within normal limits, but HEENT showed dry mucous membranes and fruity smelling breath, which were the most important identifiers. Differential diagnosis included pancreatitis, appendicitis, and gastroenteritis. The primary diagnosis was diabetic ketoacidosis due to the fruity breath, dry mucous membranes, and normal body temperature. This condition often occurs in undiagnosed type one diabetics, and resulting as a primary diagnosis for type one diabetes. To confirm, common blood tests include an arterial blood gas, electrolyte-anion gap, and/or additional urinalysis to confirm ketones. Treatment follows JDFR guidlines regarding insulin therapy as well as follow-ups with an endocrinologist.

Josh also discussed Edward Snowden his whistleblowing of secret government surveillance programs using social media and the press. Snowden and supporters claim to provide government transparency and essential public knowledge of government activities, but critics think that the act endangers the lives of government workers and national safety. How can intended acts of heroism be ethically, or not ethically, justified?


06.24.2019: Kathleen White

Kathleen’s mini-topic presentation was about a 27 month old male that suffered from abdominal pain that was caused by poor living conditions. The interns learned about mesothelioma and the importance of living in a healthy and clean environment.

Kathleen’s ethics topic discussed the 2010 Sports Illustrated cover of Olympic Skier Lyndsey Vonn and the controversy of the cover. We discussed if it was ethically right to run the image for the cover or if readers were over sensitive to the image.


06.24.2019: James Barrowman

Jim’s medical mini topic focused on a five year old patient who suffered from a cough and shortness of breath. He came to the conclusion that the patient suffered from cystic fibrosis and went into detail about the disease, talking about how it is a rare genetic disorder and is often life threatening making it an important disorder to discuss

Jim also discussed the ethical controversy that surrounded James Frey’s 2003 memoir A Million Little Pieces. The topic inspired a respectful debate among his fellow interns that brought about many insightful opinions. The topic also revealed some aspects of the publishing business and professional morals the interns were not aware of before


06.21.2019: Afrah Ahmed

Afrah talked about an elderly patient who had chest pain and whose life was being affected incredibly. After much deliberation, the patient was diagnosed with Grave's Disease which is an immune system condition that leads the thyroid to overproduce hormones.

Her ethics topic was about the ethics of personal biases in mental health care, and how a provider could feel certain things about a patient that lead to worse care.


06.21.2019: Jeevan Srivastava

Jeevan's healthcare topic discussed AMS which is an altered mental state. He talked about the importance of mental health, which is often underappreciated in healthcare. Mental health holds a lot of significance for S.C.A.R.F., which made the presentation all the more important.

His ethics topic discussed a church protesting a military funeral because they believed the military protected and advocated for homosexuals. Thus, a debate sprung about first amendment rights and where the line for free speech ends.


06.20.2019: Christopher George

Chris presented a patient who was diagnosed with a headache. After going through all of the critical factors in his diagnosis, the patient Chris was talking about was diagnosed with meningitis. Meningitis is a condition characterized by a headache, fever, stuff neck, and chills. The telling sign are positive Kernig's and Brudzinski's sign.

Chris' ethics topic talked about the morality behind using copyrighted materials in art. Art is often derivative of other art, which can lead to issues with the law. The presentation talked about how much art should be original vs. derivative.


06.18.2019: Rutva Bhatt

Rutva's ethics presentation discussed the consent of a patient and whether a surgery should be performed if the patient refuses surgery but doesn't seem to be in a correct state of mind.


(mini missing) (dont have groupme)


06.18.2019: Kunaal Dhawan

Kunaal's mini topic presentation discussed cough and shortness of breath, and how his patient was diagnosed with lung cancer or tuberculosis. Kunaal's presentation was enriching and talked about the effects of smoking on creating lung cancer.

His ethics topic talked about maternity rights and how to protect our female employees when they have a child. Raising a child is a difficult job that we recognize is hard to balance with work, and an important discussion must be had about how to best manage economic workflow and personal lives. Childcare is ever important today, and must be discussed by our future generations.


06.17.2019: Neehar


(both missing)


06.17.2019: Ananya Sehgal

Ananya's mini-topic presentation talked about a patient experiencing clinical depression, a mental health disorder resulting in depressed mood, inability to sleep and impaired concentration.

Ananya's ethics presentation discussed the responsibility of a person to his or her family and how it should affect their job prospects. The example he gave discussed whether someone should choose a job they don't like in order to stay close to home, or choose a job they would much rather have but sacrifice their ability to stay close to home.



06.14.2019: Ethan Bradner

Ethan's mini-topic presentation talked about a patient who suffered from giant cell arthritis, a debilitating condition which impacts the blood vessels of individuals over the age of 50. Giant cell arthritis leads to headaches, jaw pain, and vision issues, making it a very important topic to learn about.

Ethan also led a discussion about academic enhancement, where students can use drugs like adderal or other methods of cheating to further their success. The discussion that followed was enriching, as it revolved around topics very prevalent within individuals the interns' ages.


06.14.2019: Anish Raju

Anish discussed a patient who had musculoskeletal pain, and how it impacted the patient's life. Musculoskeletal pain impacts a patient's life beyond the immediate causes, and can even lead to further conditions. It truly shows how connected the body is.


06.13.2019: Sibghatallah Imdad

Sib presented a case study where the patient was diagnosed with celiac disease, which is a condition that impacts how a patient consumes food and his/her dietary restrictions. Celiac disease affects millions of people, and is a growing problem.

Sib's ethics presentation discussed the safety of Craigslist and the responsibility the company has to maintaining its users' protection. After numerous incidents where vendors harmed buyers, the organization has come under criticism.


06.13.2019: Morish Shah

Morish presented about a case study wherein the patient was diagnosed with pneumocystis pneumonia, which is a condition that attacks individuals with weak immune systems.

Morish's ethics topic discussed FBI Apple security, and where the line falls between security and violations of privacy. The discussion of civil liberties and governmental protection was long and brought forth many different ideas.


06.11.2019: Janki Dave

Janki presented the topic of musculoskeletal pain, which she diagnosed her patient with. She based her decision off of a variety of signs and symptoms, and used vital signs and test results to finalize the diagnosis.

Next, Janki sparked a debate about rape and parental rights. This seemingly uncomfortable topic was embraced by the interns, who explored the various philosophical and ethical layers to the topic.


06.11.2019: Arslaan Naseer

Arslaan presented a case where a 30-year-old female complained of periumbilical crampy pain of six months duration. She also had alternating constipation and diarrhea but no nausea, vomiting, weight loss, or anorexia. Arslaan came to the conclusion that the women had Ulcerative Colitis, which is a disease that affects your large intestine.

In 1993, research engineers at Heidelberg University in Germany used 200 adult and child cadavers (dead bodies) in car crash tests in order to study the actual effects of the crashes on the body. The debate that sparked over the project surrounded if the positive effects were outweighed by the methods.


06.10.2019: Sareena Shah

Sareena begun our mini topic presentations by informing the students about ectopic pregnancy, a rare type of pregnancy where the fertilized egg is implanted outside of the uterus. Women who have an ectopic pregnancy may experience pain in the abdomen, vaginal bleeding, and bloating.

Sareena’s ethic topic discussed the “Burka Ban” in France. The French Parliament passed bill prohibiting people to conceal faces in public. The heavily publicized issue certainly brought forth a large discussion.


06.10.2019: Abhinav Arulanandan

Abhinav presented a healthcare topic discussing Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome, which is a condition that affects circulation and blood flow when a person goes from sitting to standing.

Abhinav's ethics topic discussed college athletes and their responsibilities in social media, leading to a fiery debate amongst the interns.

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