[The overdiagnosis of bacterial endocarditis]

The diagnosis of bacterial endocarditis (BE) is analyzed in 255 patients. After examination, the diagnosis of BE was verified but in 92 patients (36.1%). Of these, BE was overdiagnosed in 163 patients (63.9%). The main causes of the overdiagnosis were body temperature rise in 134 patients (52.6%), heart murmur in 163 patients (63.9%), and positive hemoculture in 57 patients (22.3%). Three cases of BE overdiagnosis are provided. Exaggeration of the specificity of body temperature rise in patients with heart murmur often leads to BE overdiagnosis. Mitral valve prolapse is one of the predisposing BE factors. At the same time it is a cause of overdiagnosis of BE in patients with fever, BE overdiagnosis often results in unbased long-term antibacterial therapy, while other causes of the symptoms are not considered. Ineffectiveness of antibacterial treatment (no clinical improvement, continuous or recurrent fever) points to the necessity of further diagnostic search.