Systematic Search for Present and Potential Portals of Entry for Infective Endocarditis
Abstract
Looking for and treating the portal of entry (POE) of infective endocarditis (IE) is important, but published research on this topic is nonexistent. The goal of this study was to systematically search for the POEs of present and potentially new episodes of IEs. Patients were systematically seen by a stomatologist, an ear, nose, and throat specialist, and a urologist; women were systematically seen by a gynecologist; patients were seen by a dermatologist when there were cutaneous and/or mucous lesions. Colonoscopy and gastroscopy were performed if the microorganism came from the gastrointestinal tract in patients ≥50 years of age and in those with familial histories of colonic polyposis. Treatment of the POE was systematically considered. The POEs of the present IE episodes were identified in 74% of the 318 included patients. The most frequent POE was cutaneous (40% of identified POEs). It was mainly (62% of cutaneous POEs) associated with health care and with intravenous drug use. The second most frequent POE was oral or dental (29%). A dental infectious focus was more often involved (59% of oral or dental POEs) than a dental procedure (12%). POEs were gastrointestinal in 23% of patients. Colonic polyps were found in one-half o...Continue Reading
References
Citations
Related Concepts
Related Feeds
Cardiology Journals
Discover the latest cardiology research in this collection of the top cardiology journals.
Adenomatous Polyposis Coli
Adenomatous polyposis coli is a protein encoded by the APC gene and acts as a tumor suppressor. Discover the latest research on adenomatous polyposis coli here.