Fungal endocarditis after transfemoral aortic valve implantation

Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) was introduced in 2006 as an alternative for surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) as treatment for patients with aortic stenosis. Endocarditis after TAVI has been anecdotally reported, but concerns aroused because SAVR is often needed to explant the endocarditic valve in a high risk patient previously deemed not to be a surgical candidate. We report a case of a patient who underwent TAVI because he was too high risk to undergo SAVR. Several months later, he developed an intermittent self‐limiting fever of unknown origin which eventually was diagnosed as endocarditis. The valve was surgically removed, and pathology showed an infection caused by Histoplasma capsulatum. The patient recovered fully and remains in good condition.© 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.