Early operative intervention in aortic bacterial endocarditis.

Since 1974, 14 patients have required valve replacement for native aortic valve bacterial endocarditis at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. There were 7 male and 7 female patients ranging from 11 to 65 years old. Nine of the patients were less than 27 years old. All patients had congestive heart failure as a complication of the bacterial endocarditis and were in New York Heart Association (NYHA) Functional Class III or IV. Two patients were seen initially with arrhythmias, 3 had episodes of septic emboli, and 1 patient was operated on immediately after sustaining a cardiac arrest. Echocardiogram was utilized in 9 patients, and cardiac catheterization was performed in 6 patients who were suspected to have concomitant mitral valve or coronary artery disease. All patients were operated on within two weeks after the institution of antibiotic therapy, and there were no operative or early postoperatively deaths. Preoperative blood cultures were positive in 13 patients, with streptococcus cultured in 6 patients and staphylococcus in 4. Escherichia coli and enterococcus were the other pathogens cultured. All patients received antibiotics intravenously for a total of six weeks. There has been 1 late postoperative death, which occurred 2 months following operation in a patient with myocardial failure unresponsive to treatment. Two patients underwent reoperation, 1 because of a persistent aorto-right ventricular fistula and the second because of paraprosthetic aortic regurgitation. Nine patients are now in NYHA Functional Class I and 4 are in Class II.