title: Cardiac infections: focus on molecular diagnosis.
abstract: The role of different types of infections in heart diseases is more important than commonly thought, with new and re-emerging infections (i.e., Mycobacterium tuberculosis). This review addresses the pathology of infective pericarditis, myocarditis, and endocarditis, mainly focusing on the significance of molecular techniques in the detection of infective agents. Molecular investigations represent important ancillary diagnostic tools and combined with other conventional approaches provide a more precise final diagnosis. A close collaboration and communication among cardiologists, cardiac surgeons, pathologists, and microbiologists is essential to ensure optimal diagnoses and management as well as a favorable impact on patient outcome.
authors.affiliation: Department of Diagnostic Medical Sciences and Special Therapies, University of Padua Medical School, Padua, Italy. fiorella.calabrese@unipd.it
authors.forename: Fiorella
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Calabrese
authors.forename: Elisa
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Carturan
authors.forename: Gaetano
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Thiene
mesh_terms: D053821:Cardiovascular Infections / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000382:microbiology*; D006801:Humans; D008967:Molecular Biology / Q000379:methods / Q000639:trends