Surgical Treatment of Candida Endocarditis

After an initially successful surgery in a patient withCandidaendocarditis, three additional patients with this disease were treated by surgery. These three patients had severe aortic insufficiency, and one also had concomitant severe mitral insufficiency. Experience with chemotherapy for this infection underscores the failure of chemotherapy alone to cure the infection. A technique for the use of early surgical intervention to remove the gross nidus of infection combined with amphotericin B therapy during and following surgery has been advocated. Complete recovery and unrestricted activity have been achieved in two of these three patients for a two- and three-year follow-up. This represents a total of three surgical cures in four patients operated upon by us and is a significant improvement in the previously reported expected mortality with patients treated medically.