Group C beta-hemolytic streptococcal endocarditis: report of a pediatric case

A 9-year-old boy with a ventricular septal defect and a bicuspid aortic valve developed bacterial endocarditis due to group C streptococci. He responded to an initial antibiotic regimen of nafcillin plus gentamicin and was cured by the use of penicillin G following the isolation of the organism. The unusual nature of this case is discussed and physicians are cautioned to recognize this organism as a potential cause of infectious endocarditis in the pediatric population.