Endocarditis of the native aortic valve caused by Lactobacillus jensenii.
Lactobacilli are Gram-positive anaerobic rods or coccobacilli, commonly found as commensals in human mucosa. Rarely, they can cause serious infections such as infective endocarditis (IE), and the most frequently implicated species causing serious infections are L. casei and L. rhamnosus. IE caused by Lactobacillus jensenii is very rare, with only six reported cases so far, to the best of our knowledge. We present a case of native aortic valve endocarditis caused by L. jensenii, complicated by root abscess and complete heart block, and requiring emergent surgical intervention.
Department of Internal Medicine, Albert Einstein Medical Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
Soumya
S
Patnaik
Department of Internal Medicine, Albert Einstein Medical Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
Carlos Daniel
CD
Davila
Department of Medicine, Albert Einstein Medical Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
Anupama
A
Chennupati
Division of Cardiology, Albert Einstein Medical Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
Alexander
A
Rubin
D001022:Aortic Valve Insufficiency / Q000209:etiology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000601:surgery*; D003646:Debridement; D004697:Endocarditis, Bacterial / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery; D016908:Gram-Positive Bacterial Infections / Q000150:complications / Q000382:microbiology / Q000601:surgery*; D019918:Heart Valve Prosthesis Implantation / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007778:Lactobacillus / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016896:Treatment Outcome