To examine the role of circulating immune complexes (CIC) in infective endocarditis, we studied 64 patients with infective endocarditis for the presence of CIC by the polyethylene-glycol (PEG)-precipitation test and the Clq binding test. This study was repeated during the course of the disease in 23 patients. CIC were found in 84 per cent of patients (66 per cent with acute infective endocardit...

1. Watkin RW, Roberts GJ, Elliott TSJ. New guidance from NICE regarding antibiotic prophylaxis for infective endocarditis – response by the BSAC Working Party. J Antimicrob Chemother 2008; 62: 1477–8. 2. Gould FK, Elliott TSJ, Foweraker J et al. Guidelines for the prevention of endocarditis: report of the Working Party of the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy. J Antimicrob Chemothe...

Introduction: brucella endocarditis is a rare but severe complication of brucellosis. Although it is observed in less than 2% of the brucellosis cases, it is the main cause responsible for up to 80% of infection-related deaths in brucellosis. case report: Herein, we present a case of brucella endocarditis that developed on a native aortic valve. the diagnosis was proven by positive blood cultur...

Coagulase negative staphylococci are the principal cause of prosthetic valve endocarditis but are a rare cause of native valve infections. However, the incidence of native valve endocarditis is increasing. Staphylococcus capitis is a coagulase negative staphylococcus with the capacity to cause endocarditis on native heart valves. Two cases of native valve endocarditis caused by S capitis are pr...

postoperative vasoplegic syndrome (vs) is characterized by low systemic vascular resistance, normal or elevated cardiac output, and poor response to volume expansion. the incidence of vs after cardiac surgery requiring cardiopulmonary bypass is about 20%. sometimes, vs becomes refractory and initial treatments do not work, rendering treatment a great challenge. in this study, we describe a youn...

background infective endocarditis is one of the most important complications of injection drug use, which is associated with significant mortality and morbidity. the aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of vegetation size and localization on outcome and in-hospital mortality of infective endocarditis. patients and methods a total of 34 patients were admitted to a university hospital ...

Brucella endocarditis is associated with high morbidity and mortality. The accepted treatment for Brucella endocarditis is a combination of surgical and medical approach. In this study, we report three cases of prosthetic valve endocarditis due to Brucella spp. treated successfully with antibiotic therapy alone between 2003-2007 years. This report describes that, in some instances, Brucella end...

The most common fungal organism to cause endocarditis is Candida which is followed by Aspergillus. Aspergillus endocarditis can occur in either the native or prosthetic heart valves, usually occurs post-operative after cardiac valve surgery. This case is illustrative of a 49-year-old man with previous history of coronary artery bypass grafting presenting with aortic valve endocarditis which was...

Endocarditis is an important, although less common, cause of cerebral embolism. All forms of endocarditis share an initial common pathophysiologic pathway, best illustrated by the non-bacterial thrombotic form, but also a final potential for embolization. Stroke associated with endocarditis has signifficant mortality and morbidity rates, especially due to the frequent concomitant multiple sites...

Non-bacterial thrombotic endocarditis or marantic endocarditis is an uncommon and frequently terminal condition. We report non-bacterial thrombotic endocarditis presenting as a psychotic illness. The underlying cause was found to be adenocarcinoma of the lung. The patient was nursed on a specialist joint medical/psychiatric unit. Many medical illnesses can present with psychosis in older people...