{"id":3800,"date":"2026-06-18T06:35:55","date_gmt":"2026-06-18T06:35:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tampamovingjournal.com\/?p=3800"},"modified":"2026-06-18T06:35:55","modified_gmt":"2026-06-18T06:35:55","slug":"usf-student-survives-stroke-caused-by-rare-heart-condition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tampamovingjournal.com\/?p=3800","title":{"rendered":"USF student survives stroke caused by rare heart condition"},"content":{"rendered":"

BRANDON, Fla.<\/strong> – <\/span>A 20-year-old USF student who survived a rare stroke that was caused by a rare heart condition returned home following weeks of intensive treatment and rehabilitation at HCA Florida Brandon Hospital.\u00a0<\/p>

Read more Hillsborough County commissioners discuss impacts of proposed property tax reform, including layoffs<\/a><\/p>

Sudden morning medical emergency<\/h2>

What we know:<\/p>

<\/div>

Gabby Melo is a third-year biomedical sciences student at the University of South Florida who plans to become an emergency room doctor. She was folding laundry early in the morning on June 1 when sudden dizziness caused her to collapse.<\/p>

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“I fell onto the floor, and suddenly I couldn’t use my right arm or my right leg,” Melo said.<\/p>

Her aunt discovered her face down and unable to speak, prompting an immediate 911 call. Medical experts stress that this rapid response was vital for her survival.<\/p>

“Time is extremely important when it comes to strokes,” said Tisha Richardson, a clinical nurse coordinator at HCA Florida Brandon Hospital. “You usually have a four-hour window where you can do effective treatment.”<\/p>

\n
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Because Melo arrived at the hospital quickly, emergency doctors successfully cleared a blood clot in her brain.<\/p>

Hidden heart condition discovered<\/h2>

Big picture view:<\/p>

While emergency treatments resolved the immediate crisis, doctors did not initially know why the healthy 20-year-old suffered a stroke. Medical teams later discovered that Melo had a patent foramen ovale (PFO), which is a small opening between the upper chambers of the heart that typically closes after birth.<\/p>

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Interventional cardiologist Dr. Abdolgani Saadi explained that a PFO remains open in about 10% of the population.<\/p>

“Unfortunately, a lot of times patients present for the first time with their stroke and that’s when we find the PFO,” Saadi said.<\/p>

Saadi performed a specialized surgical procedure to permanently close the opening in Melo’s heart and prevent future clots from traveling to her brain.<\/p>

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Melo’s road to recovery<\/h2>

Dig deeper:<\/p>

Hospital staff were stunned by Melo’s determination to keep moving forward with her medical career goals during her recovery. Just 10 days after her stroke, nurses found Melo taking a biochemistry exam from her hospital bed, where she earned a score of 91.<\/p>

What’s next:<\/p>

Melo is now back home with her family, focusing on her physical recovery and her dream of practicing emergency medicine.<\/p>

“I\u2019m most excited to go into my bed and eat my aunt\u2019s food,” Melo said upon her hospital discharge.<\/p>

Read more Man critically injured after attempted burglary leads to shooting in Hudson<\/a><\/p> <\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A 20-year-old USF student who survived a rare stroke that was caused by a rare heart condition returned home following weeks of intensive treatment and rehabilitation at HCA Florida Brandon Hospital.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3795,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[49,3,192],"tags":[51,4,193],"class_list":["post-3800","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health","category-hillsborough-county","category-university-of-south-florida","tag-health","tag-hillsborough-county","tag-university-of-south-florida"],"yoast_head":"\nUSF student survives stroke caused by rare heart condition - Tampa moving journal<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/tampamovingjournal.com\/?p=3800\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"USF student survives stroke caused by rare heart condition - 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