Valve surgery for active infective endocarditis (IE) can cause fatal brain hemorrhage. Our current study aimed to evaluate the incidence of septic cerebral lesions in active IE patients by performing preoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) including T(2)*- weighted sequences and magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) before urgent valve surgery, and to investigate whether such preoperative evaluation affects postoperative outcomes.
Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Fujita Health University, 1-98 Dengakugakubo, Kutukake-cho, Toyoake, Aichi 470-1192, Japan. ytakagi@fujita-hu.ac.jp