title: Clinical and microbiologic features of multivalvular endocarditis.
abstract: Multivalvular endocarditis accounts for 15% of all endocarditis. The mechanisms of spread of the infection differs whether endocarditis is only left-sided (involving both the mitral and aortic valves) or bilateral. In left-sided bivalvular endocarditis, it is often a secondary mitral lesion following a primary aortic endocarditis. Multivalvular endocarditis often results in severe and extensive cardiac lesions, well described at echocardiography and frequently responsible for severe heart failure. Patients often need surgery, which consists of radical debridement of all the infected tissue with reconstruction using different types of prostheses; therefore, the surgery may be very complex. The goal should be an early diagnosis of endocarditis to avoid spread of the infection to more than one valve, to improve the prognosis for those patients.
authors.affiliation: University Hospital of Nancy, 54511, Nancy, France, c.suty-selton@chu-nancy.fr.
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Selton-Suty
authors.forename: Thanh
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Doco-Lecompte
authors.forename: Yvette
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Bernard
authors.forename: Xavier
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Duval
authors.forename: Lorraine
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Letranchant
authors.forename: François
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Delahaye
authors.forename: Marie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Célard
authors.forename: François
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Alla
authors.forename: Jean-Pierre
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Carteaux
authors.forename: Bruno
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Hoen