Embolism to the central nervous system is a frequent and important complication of infective endocarditis. While early surgery improves outcomes in many groups of patients with infective endocarditis, ischemic stroke secondary to septic embolism carries the risk of hemorrhagic transformation and neurological deterioration with heparinization and cardiopulmonary bypass. We review the literature regarding the surgical management of infective endocarditis in patients with cerebral emboli.
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