Legionnaire's Disease: Cardiac Manifestations.
Most cardiac infections with Legionella are secondary to bacteremias arising from a pulmonary focus. Other possible sites of origin are infected sternotomy wounds or equipment contaminated by Legionella spp. Legionella endocarditis is truly a "stealth" infection, with almost no hallmarks of bacterial endocarditis. The key step in making the diagnosis of Legionella endocarditis is for the physician to be aware of the clinical causes of culture-negative infective endocarditis and to include Legionella cardiac involvement in this differential. Many times the issue of endocarditis arises only on examination of resected valvular material.
Medical Department, Cambridge Health Alliance, 1493 Cambridge Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Division of Infectious Diseases, Cambridge Health Alliance, 1493 Cambridge Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Ambulatory Medicine, Cambridge Health Alliance, 1493 Cambridge Street, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Medicine, Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck Street, Boston, MA 02155, USA. Electronic address: jbrusch@challiance.org.
John L
JL
Brusch
D001474:Bartonella Infections; D004697:Endocarditis, Bacterial; D006801:Humans; D007875:Legionella; D007876:Legionellosis; D009956:Psittacosis; D011778:Q Fever
Cardiac infections; Endocarditis; Legionella; Legionnaire's