Same-session EUS immediately prior to scheduled ERCP may eliminate the need for ERCP and its risks in pregnant patients with no evidence of choledocholithiasis on EUS. In patients with confirmed choledocholithiasis, EUS provided additional information regarding the location, number and size of bile duct stones, which enabled the successful clearance of the bile duct without the use of fluoroscopy.
Aspergillus is a saprophytic, spore-forming fungus that is ubiquitous in our daily environment. Inhalation of the airborne conidia leads to a variety of diseases, from asymptomatic colonization to disseminated disease. Immunocompromised patients are usually viewed as the population most susceptible to aspergillosis because of their lack of host immune defenses. However, a healthy immune system does not preclude an individual from susceptibility to aspergillosis. Our case illustrates an immunocompetent patient with disseminated aspergillosis involving the tricuspid valve. A high degree of suspicion is imperative in patients who present without the classic risk factors. Recognition of disseminated aspergillosis in such patients is necessary to promote early diagnosis, treatment, and improved outcomes in an otherwise fulminant, life-threatening infection.
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