Infective Endocarditis

A systemic infection is the opposite, which is when the infection is throughout the whole body or can affect a number of organs and tissues, so any infection in your blood stream is known as a systemic infection such as HIV/AIDS. Another example is Diabetes and hyper or hypo tension.

Infective endocarditis is an infection of microorganisms, whether it be bacterial or viral, which form colonies within the endothelial lining of the heart tissue. This initiates an immune response that causes the infected sites to grow. Figure 1 8 shows vegetations on the aortic valve which prevent it from functioning properly. Without the ability to fully seal during diastole, blood is pulled back through the aortic valve from the aorta. This disrupts the pressure in the left ventricle in such a way that creates unnecessary stress on the muscle. Infective endocarditis that is present on the right side of the heart (including the aortic valve) is of highest incidence within the population of recreational intravenous drug users at 46% - 78% of reported cases. 9 The risk of infective endocarditis causing vegetation on and around the aortic valve increases after valve replacement surgery. A study done in Australia observed 2443 aortic valve replacement surgeries, taking into consideration their pre-and-post-operation condition. Of said patients, 3.7% developed infective endocarditis. All valve prostheses were either of allograft (human), xenograft (porcine, bovine, or equine), or mechanical design (composite synthetics), the xenograft being the most popular.

3) Is her history of rheumatic fever relevant to her current symptoms? Explain. Rheumatic fever caused by Group A Streptococcus bacteria may cause damage to heart tissues including valves. Overtime, congestive heart failure may have developed. However, the pulmonary semilunar valve seems to be the issue in this case study, whereas rheumatic fever normally affects left heart tissue.

Is an infection that is life threatening and spreads to the lungs, abdomen, and urinary tract. This infection is linked to osteomyelitis, central nervous system, heart and other tissues. Symptoms include: chills, fever, rapid heartbeat, and progresses to shock, red spots on skin, and confusion.

Is aggressive widespread inflammatory response to infection (sepsis) or perceived invader. Also, ischemia, infarction and injury.

the mitral valve 16 months ago and a Streptococcus mutans infection of the aortic valve 1 month ago.

While VGS is not usually highly pathogenic, it does tend to affect people who are already at risk from another health condition such as cancer or heart conditions. In order to become pathogenic, VGS must access the blood; once it does, it often goes to the heart and causes endocarditis (Doern). A common route of access is the oral cavity through bleeding gums or during dental procedures. This is why people with heart conditions take antibiotics before dental visits (Viridans-group). VGS is also the leading cause of dental caries and gingivitis (Viridans

Myocarditis is a very difficult disease to treat and to properly diagnose. The disease is symptomatic in some patients and asymptomatic in others. Myocarditis is one of the proposed mechanisms of sudden athlete death (SAD). Cardiovascular diseases are the number one cause of morbidity and mortality in western societies. Myocarditis is an inflammatory heart disease that may be caused by different pathogens and triggers; it is gaining increasing importance because of its links to sudden death syndrome in young athlete, and to dilated cardiomyopathy (Yilmaz et al., 2012). There are many proposed causes of sudden athlete death; one of the primary causes is hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). As with any disease we should investigate all factors influencing its pathology including but not limited to: genetic, cultural, and environmental factors. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is a heritable disease that is typically passed down as an autosomal dominant trait; only one copy of the dominant allele is required to display the effected phenotype.

As you have seen above, the condition is a progressive process and this means that it can be prevented and treated, especially when it is discovered in time. It usually starts from the damage of the important part of the heart that is called the endothelium. The damage is always caused by smoking, high blood pressure, as well as well as high level of cholesterol. This usually puts the heart into a serious pressure.

Myocarditis is inflammation of the middle wall of the heart that is caused by infection. The causes of this infection is other infections such as upper respiratory infections, lime disease, cocaine use or other toxic chemical exposure such as spider bites, metal poison, or snake bites but all of which are uncommon except for upper respiratory infections. There may be no signs or symptoms or they may cause heart murmurs or abnormal heart rhythms or shortness of breath or swelling. Myocarditis can affect the muscles as well as the hearts electrical system or a clot could form causing heart attacks or strokes. This is a very dangerous infection. There are treatments for this infection such as beta blockers and diuretics for less severe cases or IV antibiotics or intra-aortic balloon pumps for the more severe cases. However if left untreated it can cause CHF and or

Since it has been determined by researchers that causative agents of infective endocarditis play a major role in treatment, it is important to know what exact causes those are. In a study by Zauner et al. (2013), “IE-causing pathogens were Staphylococcus aureus, viridans streptococci, enterococci, streptococci, coagulase-negative staphylococci, and miscellaneous pathogens” (637). Depending upon the organism that infects the heart, there are different outcomes. For example, those infected by staphylococcus aureus suffered noticeably higher sepsis rates, or severe blood infections. S. aureus also tended to cause more cases of emboli activity, or blockages in the bloodstream. In contrast, other organisms affected the body differntly.

Rheumatic heart disease- is as a result of a bacterial infection as a child, resulting in pain in the chest and joints, also affecting heart valve functionality.

It can occur due to viral infections too. Because these infections affect your heart muscle and valves and eventually cause CCF. But systemic viral infections lead to this type of complications.

Pericarditis is a broad term for a condition in which the thin, sac-like membrane surrounding the heart, called the pericardium, becomes irritated and inflamed. It could arise from a previous illness or it could develop as a surgical disorder. Acute pericarditis develops suddenly and could last for several months. Constrictive pericarditis occurs when the two layers of the pericardium fuse together and become fibrous, compressing the heart. This limits the diastolic filling of the ventricles. The pericardium is composed of an inner and outer layer. Normally, a small amount of fluid exists between these two layers. When the pericardium is inflamed, extra fluid collects between these layers and results in the compression of the heart, making it more difficult for the heart to pump. When symptoms persist for longer than usual, it is considered to be chronic pericarditis, which often results in constrictive pericarditis (National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute , 2012). Viral infections are most often the cause, resulting in viral pericarditis.

This is weakness in the muscle of the heart not attributable to any extrinsic cause. Actually, most intrinsic Cardiomyopathy can be traced back to some sort