Fungal prosthetic endocarditis presenting as intracranial hemorrhage

Fungal endocarditis is a rare infection of the heart valve, forming less than 3% of infective endocarditis. Prosthetic valves have a higher rate of infection in the initial three months of surgery. Among the prosthetic valve endocarditis, fungal etiology comprises about 4% of all infections. This devastating infection carries a mortality rate of up to 62.5%. The most common causative fungal organism is Candida spp, which invariably is a consequence of horizontal transmission. Embolic phenomena form the most frequent type of clinical presentation of underlying fungal prosthetic valve endocarditis. We report here the autopsy findings of a 51-year-male, with a recent prosthetic bi-leaflet mitral valve replacement, who presented with extensive intracranial hemorrhage.