Trends in infective endocarditis.

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Infectious Diseases
• Microbiology

Background:

• Infectious endocarditis (IE) is a serious condition with high mortality.
• European guidelines in 2009 restricted antibiotic prophylaxis for IE to high-risk cardiac conditions.
• The impact of these guideline changes on IE's epidemiological and bacteriological profile requires investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the evolution of the microbiological profile of IE between 1991 and 2016.
• To assess whether changes in antibiotic prophylaxis guidelines affected IE's bacteriological characteristics.

Main Methods:

• An analytical retrospective study compared two groups of IE patients: before (Group 1) and after (Group 2) September 2009.
• Data collected included patient demographics, risk factors, blood culture results, and surgical findings.
• Statistical analysis compared clinical and microbiological characteristics between the two groups.

Main Results:

• The study included patients with a mean age of 46 ± 13 years; 40% were at high risk for IE.
• Staphylococcus was the most frequently isolated pathogen.
• No significant differences were observed in negative blood culture rates, Staphylococcus, or Streptococcus prevalence between the groups post-guideline change.

Conclusions:

• The reduction in antibiotic prophylaxis recommendations did not lead to a discernible change in the bacteriological profile of infectious endocarditis.
• The study suggests current prophylaxis guidelines have not impacted IE's causative microorganisms.