[Results of observation of infective endocarditis patients during 1965-2005]

To clarify the trends in infective endocarditis by our experience for 40 years.

During the last 40 years (1965-2005) we observed 620 patients with infective endocarditis (IE). There were 615 patients with subacute IE (99.2%) and only 5 patients with acute IE (0.8%). There were 402 males (66.8%) and 218 females (35.2%). The age was 16-84 years (mean age 53 +/- 17). We studied the finding of hemoculture, echocardiography, immunological investigations, the levels of C-reactive protein.

Streptococcal endocarditis runs a standard course, but more often we encountered staphylococcal, enterococcal endocarditis with a severe course. Predisposing cardiac disorders in 264 IE patients were rheumatic heart disease, congenital heart disease, mitral prolapse, involutive valve disease, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, prosthetic valve.

Conventional and unconventional IE cases, recurrent IE, current criteria of IE are described.