0000000000286677
AUTHOR
Leon Iri Kupferwasser
The presence of infection-related antiphospholipid antibodies in infective endocarditis determines a major risk factor for embolic events.
Abstract OBJECTIVES The impact of infection-associated antiphospholipid antibodies (APA) on endothelial cell activation, blood coagulation and fibrinolysis was evaluated in patients with infective endocarditis with and without major embolic events. BACKGROUND An embolic event is a common and severe complication of infective endocarditis. Despite the fact that APAs are known to be associated with infectious diseases, their pathogenic role in infective endocarditis has not been clearly defined. METHODS The relationship among the occurrence of major embolic events, echocardiographic vegetation size, endothelial cell activation, thrombin generation, fibrinolysis and APA was examined in 91 patie…
Diagnosis of culture-negative endocarditis: The role of the Duke criteria and the impact of transesophageal echocardiography
Abstract Background The Duke criteria have been shown to be more sensitive than the von Reyn criteria in the diagnosis of culture-positive endocarditis but to date have not been fully validated for culture-negative endocarditis (CNE). The aim of this study was (1) to compare the diagnostic accuracy of the Duke criteria versus clinical judgment and the von Reyn criteria in CNE and (2) to assess the diagnostic impact of transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) on the Duke criteria in CNE. Methods The study group consisted of 49 patients with suspected CNE in whom the presence (n = 32) or absence (n = 17) of endocarditis was confirmed by surgery, autopsy, or both. All patients underwent transtho…
Echocardiography predicts embolic events in infective endocarditis∗∗Editorials published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiologyreflect the views of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of JACCor the American College of Cardiology.
Infective endocarditis can be a devastating disease. Embolic events, particularly strokes, are dreaded complications that often leave persistent disability after the infection is successfully treated. Despite advances in surgical techniques and antibiotic therapy, the incidence of embolism remains