Transfer Factor Revisited: Treatment of Candida Prosthetic Valve Endocarditis

Transfer Factor Revisited: Treatment of Candida Prosthetic Valve Endocarditis

J. Kelly Smith, MD, FACP1,2*

1Department of Academic Affairs, James H. Quillen College of Medicine, East Tennessee State University, USA; 2Department of Biomedical Sciences, James H. Quillen College of Medicine, East Tennessee State University, USA

Candida prosthetic valve endocarditis (CPVE) is most commonly seen in persons who inject drugs intravenously or have indwelling catheters, pacemakers, or prosthetic joints that can serve as a nidus for candida suprainfection and seed the valve. Current treatment guidelines for CPVE include valve replacement and long-term antifungal therapy with intravenously administered Amphotericin B and parenteral or oral therapy with 5-fluorocytosine. Despite treatment, CPVE is characterized by a high recurrence rate (up to 36%) and a 5-year survival of less than 50%.
I review my past experience in treating recalcitrant CPVE with transfer factor (TF) immunotherapy and conclude that TF can be a valuable adjuvant in the treatment of CPVE that does not respond to conventional interventions.

Keywords: Transfer factor, dialyzable leukocyte extract, DLE, candida, prosthetic valve endocarditis, migration inhibition factor, MIF, monocytes, immunotherapy, immune exhaustion

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How to cite this article:

J. Kelly Smith. Transfer Factor Revisited: Treatment of Candida Prosthetic Valve Endocarditis. International Journal of Case Reports, 2019 4:100. DOI: 10.28933/ijcr-2019-10-2305

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