title: Bartonella as a cause of mechanical prosthetic aortic root endocarditis.
abstract: Bartonella henselae infection is typically associated with cat scratch disease. This microorganism can also lead to culture-negative infective endocarditis in immunocompromised patients. We present a rare case of a previously healthy 65-year-old man with B. henselae-associated endocarditis of a prosthetic aortic root. All blood cultures, as well as cultures of the resected aortic valve vegetations, remained negative. Polymerase chain reaction with specific bacterial primers with DNA sequencing was used to identify B. henselae as the etiologic agent. This was successfully managed by an aortic root re-replacement using a mechanical conduit, reimplantation of coronaries ostia, and antibiotic therapy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, University Hospital of Poitiers, Poitiers, France. jamilhajjchahine@yahoo.fr
authors.forename: Jamil
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hajj-Chahine
authors.forename: Hassan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Houmaida
authors.forename: Chloé
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Plouzeau
authors.forename: Jacques
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tomasi
authors.forename: Pierre
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Corbi
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001014:Aortic Aneurysm / Q000601:surgery*; D001021:Aortic Valve / Q000601:surgery; D001022:Aortic Valve Insufficiency / Q000601:surgery*; D018416:Bartonella henselae / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D019917:Blood Vessel Prosthesis Implantation; D002372:Cat-Scratch Disease / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000628:therapy; D004697:Endocarditis, Bacterial / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000628:therapy; D006350:Heart Valve Prosthesis / Q000382:microbiology*; D019918:Heart Valve Prosthesis Implantation; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012086:Reoperation