Fungal endocarditis: microbial insights, diagnostic and therapeutic challenges in the modern era
Fungal endocarditis (FE) is still an uncommon but devastating infection, especially when immunosuppression, prosthetic valve surgery, or prolonged health care is involved. Although being only responsible for 1–6% of infective endocarditis cases, the mortality rate is higher than 40–60% due to the ti...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Open Exploration Publishing Inc.
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Exploration of Cardiology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.explorationpub.com/uploads/Article/A101264/101264.pdf |
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| Summary: | Fungal endocarditis (FE) is still an uncommon but devastating infection, especially when immunosuppression, prosthetic valve surgery, or prolonged health care is involved. Although being only responsible for 1–6% of infective endocarditis cases, the mortality rate is higher than 40–60% due to the time lag from diagnosis and therapeutic complexity. Etiology is led by Candida species, especially Candida albicans, followed by Aspergillus, and new pathogens like multidrug-resistant Candida auris are also seen. Non-C. albicans and the biofilm-forming species also add more complexity to the manageability. Diagnosis is challenging due to the high percentage of culture-negative cases, particularly for molds, requiring sophisticated investigations such as fungal biomarkers (β-D-glucan, galactomannan), molecular tests, and imaging studies such as 18F-FDG PET/CT (fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography). Early transesophageal echocardiography is crucial in the diagnosis of vegetations, whereas histopathology of resected non-cardiac tissue offers a definitive diagnosis. Treatment requires aggressive antifungal therapy, echinocandins, amphotericin B, or azoles, in conjunction with urgent valve surgery to reduce embolic risk and enhance survival. However, drug resistance, biofilm resistance, and patient comorbidities counteract the efficacy. Novel treatments such as rezafungin and ibrexafungerp are promising but have limited clinical hands-on evidence. Risk factors of immunosuppression, indwelling devices, and IV drug use imply a need for increased clinical suspicion in high-risk groups. Although there have been minor improvements in FE survival, the grim situation of FE persists, highlighting the importance of a multidisciplinary approach, early diagnosis, and tailored antifungal therapy to control this deadly infection. |
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| ISSN: | 2994-5526 |