Disseminated melioidosis with native valve endocarditis: a case report

Burkholderia pseudomallei is a Gram negative, soil-water saprophytic bacterium endemic in South-East Asia and Northern Australia. Melioidosis is being increasingly diagnosed in other regions like India, China, and Sri Lanka during recent years. The clinical presentation of melioidosis is extremely variable.

We present a case of melioidosis presenting as native valve infective endocarditis with concomitant hepatic and splenic abscesses. This is the second case of melioidosis with infective endocarditis reported from India.

Melioidosis can present with pneumonia, pleural effusion, subcutaneous abscesses, visceral abscesses, osteomyelitis, and septicaemia, but cardiac involvement is rare. Endocarditis due to melioidosis is rare (∼1%) and is rarely reported in literature. This case highlights the unusual presentation of this emerging disease.