A Case Report of Successful Conservative Treatment for Infective Endocarditis Caused by Gemella sanguinis.

Infective endocarditis is defined as an infection of a native or prosthetic heart valve, the endocardial surface of the heart, or an indwelling cardiac device. Among the miscellaneous emerging opportunistic bacteria that can cause infective endocarditis is Gemella sanguinis that has been reported as a cause of infective endocarditis in nine cases in the past. All of the survivors received antimicrobial therapy and underwent prosthetic valve replacement surgery while, in general, a proportion of 40-50% of the patients with infective endocarditis underwent valve surgery. Our case illustrates that valve surgery, in combination with the administration of antibiotics, is not the only therapeutic option for infective endocarditis due to Gemella sanguinis and that a conservative management with prolonged administration of parenteral antibiotics under close supervision of the patient can be an option.

Effective use of levosimendan in anthracycline-induced cardiomyopathy: A case report.

BACKGROUND: Anthracycline-induced cardiomyopathy is a serious side effect that ranges from mild left ventricular systolic impairment to congestive heart failure and cardiogenic shock. Currently, there is no evidence indicating the effective use of levosimendan in these cases. OBJECTIVE: We aim to present a case of life-threatening doxorubicin-induced cardiomyopathy that was successfully managed with levosimendan. CASE: A 48-year-old female with formerly normal heart function, who had been treated with doxorubicin-based regimens for dedifferentiated chondrosarcoma, presented with cardiomyopathy with low left ventricular ejection fraction eight months after the last infusion. As treatment with ramipril, carvedilol, and furosemide followed by dopamine and noradrenaline was not sufficient, levosimendan was administered. Left ventricular ejection fraction increased from 15% to 45% and her clinical condition improved. DISCUSSION: Although anthracycline-induced cardiomyopathy may have a poor prognosis, levosimendan was shown to be effective in this patient. Therefore, levosimendan may represent a possible therapeutic option in such cases.