title: Active infectious endocarditis: postoperative outcome.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Many changes have occurred in the natural history and the management of active infectious endocarditis (AIE) in recent years. Therefore, the records of patients admitted in a tertiary care specialized hospital presenting with the Duke criteria were reviewed.
  
  
  METHODS
  Adults operated on to treat AIE were included during a 3-year period. Patients presenting with AIE associated with a pacemaker were not included. Bacteriologic investigations included blood cultures, intraoperative samplings (including polymerase chain reaction), and serologies. Clinical and bacteriologic factors associated with hospital mortality were studied by univariate regression analysis (p < 0.05).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Ninety-eight of 164 patients (60%) admitted with the diagnosis of AIE underwent valvular surgery. The duration between the beginning of AIE and surgery was 23 +/- 16 (mean +/- standard deviation) days. Only 45 patients had a previous history of valvular disease. Seventy-two patients presented with aortic and 41 with mitral valve AIE. Fifty suffered from embolic events. Streptococcus species were responsible in 64 cases (23 were Streptococcus bovis) and Staphylococcus species in 24 cases. Death occurred postoperatively in 19 patients. The factors associated with fatal outcome were preoperative hemodynamic instability, age, Parsonnet and Simplified Acute Physiology Score II scores, diabetes mellitus, preexisting valvulopathy, antiarrhythmic treatment, hypoalbuminemia, renal dysfunction, duration of extracorporeal circulation, and red cell allogeneic transfusions. The type of bacteria did not influence mortality. The mean intensive care unit and hospital stays were 10 and 39 days, respectively. Eleven patients suffered from neurologic sequelae; 2 years later, 2 of them presented with severe deficit and 1 had died.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  AIE necessitating cardiac surgery should be considered as a severe and resource-consuming disease.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesia and Intensive Care, Hôpital Cardiovasculaire et Pneumologique Louis Pradel, BP Lyon Montchat, 69394 Lyon Cedex 03, France.
authors.forename: Pascal
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rosamel
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cervantes
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tristan
authors.forename: Françoise
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Thivolet-Béjui
authors.forename: Olivier
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Bastien
authors.forename: Jean-François
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Obadia
authors.forename: Jean-Jacques
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Lehot
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D006348:Cardiac Surgical Procedures; D004697:Endocarditis, Bacterial / Q000150:complications*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006349:Heart Valve Diseases / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery*; D017052:Hospital Mortality; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000401:mortality*; D011184:Postoperative Period; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015996:Survival Rate