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We present the case of a 49-year-old man with a bicuspid aortic valve who presented to the emergency department with limb weakness and a fever. Blood tests revealed a fulminant septic process with Haemophilus parainfluenzae bacteraemia, anaemia and thrombocytopenia. Imaging revealed a cervical spinal abscess and discitis causing spinal cord compression, in addition to multiple cerebral septic emboli, pleural effusions and ascites. A transoesophageal echocardiogram (TOE ) performed post decompression of his spinal collection showed native aortic valve endocarditis with an associated large aortic root abscess. He underwent successful aortic valve surgery and a 6-week course of antibiotic therapy and made an excellent clinical recovery with no long-term complications from his condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors report the case of an 87-year-old lady who presented with a right middle cerebral artery territory infarct in whom the authors diagnosed a probable ruptured blood cyst attached to her anterior mitral valve leaflet, with the use of trans-thoracic and trans-oesophageal echocardiography. Embolic strokes are recognised as a rare complication of intracardiac blood cysts, with very few cases previously reported. Echocardiography was first used to identify a blood cyst in 1983 and remains an excellent modality to diagnose this rare condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]