Does CMV infection increase the incidence of infective endocarditis following kidney transplantation?

Infective endocarditis (IE) is a rare but life threatening infection after renal transplantation. In addition, coinfection of CMV and IE has not been reported. Therefore, the current study was initiated to determine whether CMV infection is a risk factor for developing of IE after kidney transplantation.

In a retrospectively study, we analyzed the medical records of 3700 kidney recipients at two transplant centers in Iran, between January 2000 and June 2008 for infective endocarditis.

During the study, 15 patients with IE hospitalized in our centers were included. The predominant causative microorganisms (60%) were group D non-enterococcal streptococci and enterococci. Patient survival rate in all recipients was 66% at 6 months. Data analysis showed no significant differences in 6 months patient survival from hospitalization between both groups with and without CMV infection (P=0.2). The presentation time of infective endocarditis in recipients with CMV coinfection was more likely to be early when compared to CMV negative coinfection patients (P=0.03).

The present study indicates that CMV infection may lead to predispose to infective endocarditis after kidney transplantation. Rapid diagnosis, effective treatment, and prompt recognition of complications in kidney transplant recipients are essential to good patient outcome.