prosthetic valve endocarditis: early outcome following medical or surgical treatment

background : prosthetic valve endocarditis (pve) is an important cause of morbidity and mortality associated with heart valve replacement surgery. the aim of the present study was to describe the early outcome of treatment in patients with pve in a single center. methods : the data of all the episodes of pve registered at our institution between 2002 and 2007 were collected and analyzed retrospectively. the patients were assessed using clinical criteria defined by durack and colleagues (duke criteria). the analysis included a detailed study of hospital records. the continuous variables were expressed as mean ± standard deviation, and the discrete variables were presented as percentages. results: thirteen patients with pve were diagnosed and treated at our center during the study period. in all the cases, mechanical prostheses were utilized. the patients' mean age was 46.9±12.8 years . women made up 53.8% of all the cases.   early pve was detected in 6 (46.2%) patients, and late pve occurred in 7 (53.8 %). eleven (84.6%) patients were treated with intravenous antimicrobial therapy, and the other two (15.4%) required surgical removal and replacement of the infected prosthesis in addition to antibiotic therapy. blood cultures became positive in 46.2% of the patients. mortality rate was 15.4% (2 patients). conclusion: it seems that in selected cases with pve, i.e. in those who remain clinically stable and respond well to antimicrobial therapy, a cure could be achieved by antimicrobial treatment alone with acceptable morbidity and mortality risk.