Infective endocarditis (IE) is known to be associated with increased morbidity and mortality . The majority of patients are treated conservatively with antibiotics, predominantly those with uncomplicated IE or those who are deemed unsuitable for surgery . For patients with prosthetic valve endocarditis (PVE), there are higher thresholds for surgical re-intervention, due to increased surgical risk, further increasing mortality . The interplay between the appropriate indication for surgical intervention, the timing of surgery and its associated risk is complex and remains unclear in IE due to the low level of evidence that exists currently. The majority of available literature is retrospective and observational, limited greatly by inherent selection and survival bias. Further, cardiac arrest is a rare but devastating complication of IE for which even less is known.