Legionella micdadei, a new cause of prosthetic joint infection.

Extrapulmonary infections caused by Legionella spp. other than Legionella pneumophila are rare. We report what is, to our knowledge, the first description of a prosthetic joint infection due to Legionella spp. Systematic testing of samples with suspected prosthetic infection by molecular biology techniques was essential. Legionella micdadei should be added to the list of microorganisms causing prosthetic joint infection.

Risk factors of pericardial effusion in native valve infective endocarditis and its influence on outcome: A multicenter prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Pericardial effusion is a frequent finding in the setting of infective endocarditis. Limited data exists on clinical characteristics and outcomes in this group of patients. We aimed to determine the associated factors, clinical characteristics, and outcomes of patients who had pericardial effusion and native valve infective endocarditis. METHODS AND RESULTS: A total of 1205 episodes of infective endocarditis from 25 Spanish centers between June 2007 and March 2013 within the Spanish Collaboration on Endocarditis (GAMES) registry were included. Echocardiogram at admission, clinical and microbiological variables, and one-year follow-up were analyzed. Pericardial effusion was observed in 7.8% (94/1205 episodes) of episodes of infective endocarditis, most of them being mild or moderate (93.6%). The presence of pericardial effusion was associated with a higher risk of heart failure during admission (OR 1.9; CI 95% 1.2-3.0). Patients with pericardial effusion had a higher rate of surgery (53.2% vs. 41.1%; p = 0.02); however, this association was no longer significant after adjusting for possible confounders (OR 1.4; CI 95% 0.9-2.2; p = 0.10). The presence of pericardial effusion was not associated with a higher in-hospital or one-year mortality (33.0% vs. 25.2%; p = 0.10 and 40.2% vs. 37.3%; p = 0.60 respectively). CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of pericardial effusion in patients with infective endocarditis was lower than previously reported. The presence of pericardial effusion is associated with the development of heart failure during hospitalization making it a warning sign, possibly reflecting indirectly a mechanical complication, which, however, if treated surgically in a timely manner does not change the final outcome of patients.

Endocarditis in patients with ascending aortic prosthetic graft: a case series from a national multicentre registry.

OBJECTIVES: Endocarditis in patients with ascending aortic prosthetic graft (AAPG) is a life-threatening complication. The purpose of this study was to examine the clinical presentation and prognosis of patients with AAPG endocarditis included in a large prospective infectious endocarditis multicentre study. METHODS: From January 2008 to April 2015, 3200 consecutive patients with infectious endocarditis according to the modified Duke criteria, were prospectively included in the 'Spanish Collaboration on Endocarditis Registry (GAMES)' registry. Twenty-seven definite episodes of endocarditis (0.8%) occurred in patients with AAPG. RESULTS: During the study period, 27 cases of endocarditis were detected in patients with AAPG. The median age of patients was 61 years [interquartile range (IQR) 51-68 years] and 23 (85.2%) patients were male. The median time from AAPG surgery to the episode of AAPG infection was 24 months (IQR 6-108 months). The most frequently isolated micro-organisms were coagulase-negative staphylococci and S. aureus (11 patients, 40.7%). Four patients (14.8%) underwent medical treatment, whereas surgery was performed in 21 (77.7%). Two patients (7.4%) died before surgery could be performed. The median hospital stay prior to surgery was 7 days (IQR 4-21 days). Surgery consisted of replacing previous grafts with a composite aortic graft (10 cases) or aortic homograft (2 patients), and removal of a large vegetation attached to the valve of a composite tube (1 case). Nine patients had an infected aortic valve prosthesis without evidence of involvement of the AAPG. Isolated redo-aortic valve replacement was performed in 8 (88.9%) of these patients. Reinfection occurring during 1 year of follow-up was not detected in any patient. Two patients (7.4%) died while awaiting surgery and 6 did so after surgery (22.2%). A New York Heart Association (NYHA) Class IV was associated with mortality in patients undergoing surgery (P < 0.019). CONCLUSIONS: Most cases of endocarditis in patients with AAPG occur late after initial surgery. Mortality rate of patients with AAPG endocarditis who undergo surgery is acceptable. NYHA Class IV before surgery is associated with an increased postoperative mortality.