Central nervous system embolism in the course of infective endocarditis

Despite the progress made in diagnosis and treatment of heart valve diseases, the incidence of infective endocarditis (IE) remains constant. It is still associated with high mortality and high rate of embolic complications, including most dangerous one, i.e. stroke. It has a significant impact on further treatment and qualifications for cardiac surgery. In this paper, the authors discuss the epidemiology, mechanisms of stroke and its impact on the qualifications for cardiac surgery. The authors discuss the problem of clinically silent central nervous system embolism in the course of IE and the usefulness of neuroimaging and markers of central nervous system damage in diagnosis of cerebral embolism.