[Differential diagnosis of infectious and non-infectious thrombotic endocarditis]

The aim of the study was analysis of clinical and laboratory markers of non-infectious thrombotic endocarditis (NITE) to facilitate differential diagnosis with infectious endocarditis (IE). 20 NITE patients (8 males and 12 females, mean age 32.3 years) were included in the trial. They had primary antiphospholipid syndrome, secondary antiphospholipid syndrome in systemic lupus erythematosus, nodular polyarteritis, nonspecific aortic arteritis, paraneoplastic NITE in lung and stomach cancer. NITE was also diagnosed in patients with gout and ankylosing spondylarthritis. Clinical and laboratory findings allow to differentiate IE with NITE. The former is characterized by destructive valvular lesions registered at echo-CG, positive hemoculture and arterial embolism. As a rule, NITE is associated with antiphospholipid syndrome and manifests with arterial and venous thrombosis, thrombocytopenia, livedo and presence of antibodies to cardiolipins.