Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Probable zoonotic pulmonary prosthetic valve infective endocarditis and acalculous cholecystitis caused bysubspecies.
- Journal:
- BMJ case reports
- Year:
- 2024
- Authors:
- Eustace, Matthew et al.
- Affiliation:
- Pathology Queensland-Central Microbiology Laboratory · Australia
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
This case involves a young woman who had surgery to fix a heart condition called tetralogy of Fallot and later developed a serious infection in her artificial pulmonary valve, likely from exposure to horses. She also had a problem with her gallbladder, which led to surgery to remove it. After doctors found the specific bacteria causing her infection, she received a combination of antibiotics and a new valve replacement. Thankfully, her treatment was successful, and she was able to recover.
Abstract
Prosthetic pulmonary valve endocarditis is a rare but serious infective complication following correction of tetralogy of Fallot (ToF). We describe a probable zoonotic case ofsubspeciesprosthetic pulmonary valve infective endocarditis in a young woman with corrected ToF with regular exposure to horses. The case was further complicated by acalculous cholecystitis, which was the initial presenting syndrome, requiring laparoscopic cholecystectomy. Microbiological analysis of blood cultures yielded growth ofwith whole genome sequencing confirming the subspecies identification ofThe patient underwent successful combined medical and surgical management incorporating a 6-week course of intravenous antibiotics and a re-do homograft pulmonary valve replacement followed by prolonged oral antibiotic therapy. Clinicians should be mindful of the increased risk of endocarditis in adult congenital heart disease and relevant bacteraemia detection should prompt thorough valvular assessment.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39496336/