Pathologic findings: Valvular destruction, perivalvular abnormalities and extracardiac findings

Abstract

Infective endocarditis (IE) may give rise to numerous extracardiac, cardiac and valvular findings including infected thrombi (vegetations), sequelae of local tissue destruction, and systemic manifestations including vasculitis, emboli and ischemic events. This is an appropriate term as the causal organisms may be bacterial, fungal, rickettsial, or even mycoplasmal. Traditionally a distinction between acute and subacute IE was made depending upon the illness severity and rate of disease progression. This reflected an organism's virulence and the presence of underlying cardiac disease. With anti-microbial treatment these clinical divisions have little significance, and it is preferable to think in terms of active, healing, and healed IE [1, 2]. Endocarditis is now probably best described by its anatomical location and the organism involved.