Infective endocarditis

Background

• Infection of endocardium, generally involving the heart valves, either prosthetic or native

Microbiology

• Bacteria
  • Staphylococcus aureus (most common)
  • Viridans group streptococci
  • Coagulase-negative staphylococci
  • Other streptococci
  • Enterococci
  • HACEK group
  • Coxiella
  • Brucella
• Fungi
  • Candida
• Culture-negative endocarditis
  • Coxiella burnetii
  • Bartonella species
  • Brucella species
  • Legionella species
  • Mycoplasma species
  • Tropheryma whipplei
  • Abiotrophia species
  • Cutibacterium acnes

Risk Factors

• Cardiac
  • Prior endocarditis
  • Prosthetic heart valve or implanted device
  • Congenital heart disease, especially unrepaired cyanotic congenital heart disease
  • Valve abnormalities
• Non-cardiac
  • Intravenous drug use
  • Indwelling intravenous lines
  • Immunosuppression
  • Recent dental work or surgical procedure associated with bacteremia

Clinical Manifestations

• In general, symptoms are fever, chills, and malaise in a patient at risk for endocarditis
• Tends to progress rapidly
• May have a new murmur, stroke syndrome, pulmonary embolism, arthralgias
• Specific organisms may be associated with specific risk factors
  • Injection drug use: Viridans group streptococci and Pseudomonas aeruginosa
  • Colon cancer: Streptococcus gallolyticus subspecies gallolyticus and Clostridium septicum

Subacute Bacterial Endocarditis

• Insidious onset with more pronounced constitutional symptoms progressing over weeks to months

Differential Diagnosis

• Non-infectious causes of endocarditis
  • Acute rheumatic fever
  • Libman-Sacks endocarditis
  • Rheumatoid arthritis
  • Marantic endocarditis
  • Löeffler endocarditis
• Any cause of fever or consitutional symptoms

Diagnosis

• Based on a combination of clinical exam, laboratory investigations, and imaging
• Refer to Modified Duke criteria

Management

• Varies by causative organism and prosthetic vs. native valve
• In patients who are in acute heart failure, may need to consider the sodium content of the antibiotics used

Antimicrobial Selection

Valve	Antibiotic	Dose	Duration	Notes
MSSA and other oxacillin-susceptible Staphylococcus
NVE	oxacillin	2 g IV q4h	6 weeks	can treat for 2 weeks in uncomplicated right-sided NVE
NVE	cefazolin	2 g IV q8h	6 weeks	in patients with non-anaphylactoid penicillin allergy
PVE	oxacillin	2 g IV q4h	≥6 weeks	use cefazolin or vancomycin if allergy
	+ rifampin	300 mg IV/PO q8h
	+ gentamicin	1 mg/kg IV/IM q8h	2 weeks
MRSA and other oxacillin-resistant Staphylococcus
NVE	vancomycin	15 mg/kg IV q12h	6 weeks	target trough 10-20 μg/mL
NVE	daptomycin	≥8 mg/kg/dose	6 weeks
PVE	vancomycin	15 mg/kg IV q12h	≥6 weeks	target vancomycin trough of 10-20 μg/mL
	+ rifampin	300 mg IV/PO q8h
	+ gentamicin	1 mg/kg IV/IM q8h	2 weeks
Enterococcus susceptible to penicillin and gentamicin
NVE/PVE	ampicillin	2 g IV q4h	4-6 weeks	4 weeks if symptoms <3 months; 6 weeks if symptoms >3 months or if PVE
	+ gentamicin	1 mg/kg IV q8h
NVE/PVE	ampicillin	2 g IV q4h	6 weeks	alternative regimen if CrCl <50
	+ ceftriaxone	2 g IV q12h
Enterococcus susceptible to penicillin and resistant to aminoglycosides
NVE/PVE	ampicillin	2 g IV q4h	6 weeks
	+ ceftriaxone	2 g IV q12h
Enterococcus resistant to penicillin and susceptible to vancomycin and aminoglycosides
NVE/PVE	vancomycin	15 mg/kg IV q12h	6 weeks
	+ gentamicin	1 mg/kg IV/IM q8h
Enterococcus resistant to penicillin, aminoglycosides, and vancomycin
NVE/PVE	linezolid	600 mg IV/PO q12h	>6 weeks
NVE/PVE	daptomycin	10-12 mg/kg IV q24h	>6 weeks
Viridans Streptococcus or Streptococcus gallolyticus highly susceptible to penicillin (MIC ≤0.12 μg/mL)
NVE	crystalline penicillin G	3-4 MU IV q4h	4 weeks
NVE	ceftriaxone	2 g IV/IM q24h	4 weeks
NVE	penicillin or ceftriaxone	as above	2 weeks
	+ gentamicin	3 mg/kg IV/IM q24h
NVE	vancomycin	15 mg/kg IV q12h	4 weeks	use if allergy, target 10-15 μg/mL
PVE	crystalline penicillin G	6 MU IV q4h	6 weeks
	± gentamicin	3 mg/kg IV/IM q24h	2 weeks
PVE	ceftriaxone	2 g IV/IM q24h	6 weeks
	± gentamicin	3 mg/kg IV/IM q24h	2 weeks
PVE	vancomycin	15 mg/kg IV q12h	6 weeks	use if allergy
Viridans Streptococcus or Streptococcus gallolyticus relatively resistant to penicillin (MIC >0.12 μg/mL)
NVE	crystalline penicillin G	6 MU IV q4h	4 weeks
	+ gentamicin	3 mg/kg IV/IM q24h	2 weeks
NVE	vancomycin	15 mg/kg IV q12h	4 weeks	use if allergy, target 10-15 μ/mL
PVE	crystalline penicillin G	6 MU IV q4h	6 weeks
	+ gentamicin	3 mg/kg IV/IM q24h
PVE	ceftriaxone	2 g IV/IM q24h	6 weeks
	+ gentamicin	3 mg/kg IV/IM q24h
PVE	vancomycin	15 mg/kg IV q12h	6 weeks	use if allergy
Streptococcus pneumoniae
NVE	penicillin		4 weeks
NVE	cefazolin		4 weeks
NVE	ceftriaxone		4 weeks
PVE	penicillin		6 weeks
PVE	cefazolin		6 weeks
PVE	ceftriaxone		6 weeks
Streptococcus pyogenes
NVE	crystalline penicillin G		4 weeks
NVE	ceftriaxone		4 weeks
PVE	crystalline penicillin G		6 weeks
PVE	ceftriaxone		6 weeks
Group B, C, or G Streptococcus
NVE	crystalline penicillin G		4 weeks
	± gentamicin		2 weeks
NVE	ceftriaxone		4 weeks
	± gentamicin		2 weeks
PVE	crystalline penicillin G		6 weeks
	± gentamicin		2 weeks
PVE	ceftriaxone		6 weeks
	± gentamicin		2 weeks
HACEK bacterium
NVE	ceftriaxone	2 g IV/IM q24h	4 weeks
PVE	ceftriaxone	2 g IV/IM q24h	6 weeks
NVE/PVE	ciprofloxacin	500 mg PO q12h	6 weeks

Indications for Surgery

• Early valve surgery (that is, before discharge and completion of antibiotics) is recommended in some scenarios
• Left-sided endocarditis
  • Acute heart failure
  • Fungal endocarditis
  • Highly-resistant organisms
  • Heart block, annular or aortic abscess, or perforating valve lesion
  • Bacteremia or fever lasting more than 5-7 days despite appropriate antimicrobials
  • Severe valvular regurgitation and mobile vegetations >1 cm
  • Prosthetic valve endocarditis with recurrent emboli despite appropriate antimicrobials
  • Relapsed prosthetic valve endocarditis
• Right-sided endocarditis
  • Severe tricuspid valve regurgitation with right heart failure despite medical therapy
  • Persistent infection with difficult-to-treat organisms
  • Tricuspid valve vegetation >2 cm
  • Recurrent pulmonary emboli despite appropriate antimicrobials

Prevention

• Prophylaxis is recommended for high-risk patients who are undergoing higher-risk procedures
• Patient characteristics
  • Prosthetic heart valve
  • Previous infective endocarditis
  • Unrepaired cyanotic congenital heart disease, or repaired within the past six months with prosthetic material in situ, or repaired with residual defect and with material in situ
  • Cardiac transplantation with valvulopathy
• Procedures
  • Dental procedures with manipulation of the gingiva or periapical region of teeth, perforation of mucosa
    • This includes professional cleaning procedures
  • Procedures involving incision of respiratory mucosa, including tonsillectomy and bronchoscopic biopsy
  • Procedures on infected tissue (skin, bone, joint, etc)