The evolution of the clinical course of infectious endocarditis

: As many as 188 records of IE patients were studied as were 67 autopsies of deceased persons. Significant changes in the clinical course of IE were disclosed over the past 10-15 years versus previous 15: more prominent role of staphylococcal and gram-negative flora in the etiology of the illness, with microbial associations-caused IE cases having become more common. Diagnostic value of hemoculture did not appear to show much promise. The following items were found to be important risk factors for IE: prior viral and bacterial infection, invasive interventions, and chronic somatic diseases. There prevailed those IE forms having appeared on the intact heart valves in elderly persons and those at a mature age. In the course of the illness there tended to be more toxic and allergic manifestations, thromboembolic complications, and extensive vascular pathology.