sub- acute bacterial endocarditis

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N

Nan

Hello everyone. Well, it has only been about a week since I last logged on, but what a week. I was diagnosed with Sub-acute bacterial endocarditis (strep viridans) as well as Salmonella (gee, one wasn't enough?) and ended up in the hospital on IV antibiotics. I am now home on IV antibiotics for 6 weeks.

So, a word of caution....if you feel sick, even if it is just sort of generalized , check with your pcp...ask for a blood culture for BE. Those of us with either "bad" valves, waiting for surgery, or implanted valves...mechanical or bio, are at higher risk for these nasty bacteria. I had sort of vague symptoms, a low grade fever on and off (between 99 and 100.5), was feeling worse after my surgery than I did before it, was short of breath and just exhausted. Of course having hemolytic anemia didn't help that either.

Mine was caught fairly early so a full recovery is anticipated. But it is possible if you don't respond well to the antibiotic therapy, that you would have to have a re-surgery so they can take out the infected valve(s) and put in new ones.

Be well everybody.
 
Wow, Nan! Very sorry to read this! I hope the treatment will completely knock the bad stuff out for you. And thank you for the important reminder. Post again to keep us all updated? Take care.
 
I was thinking of you today, and that I hadn't seen any posts from you for a while.

Sorry to hear about the two nasty bugs. Did you stay local for this?
 
Nan, I sure hope your feeling better....

Nan, I sure hope your feeling better....

What an aweful thing to happen, but I am thrilled that they caught it early for you and your going to be fine...Harrybaby:D :D :D
 
So sorry to hear this Nan, but glad that you caught it and wish you the best for an uneventful recovery. Thanks for the post and the "warning"!
 
Nan,

Sorry to hear you are going through this.

I am a lucky one because both my cardio and PCP do not fool around with symptoms such as the ones you mentioned. I was in the hospital over Thanksgiving because of such symptoms. They threw me in the hospital and on IV antibiotics while waiting for the blood cultures to come back. Luckily it turned out I did not have BE but they did not want to hold off in case I did.

Better to be safe than sorry.

Hope you are doing better every day.
 
Wow, Nan! How astute of you to realize so quickly that something was wrong! Hopefully all will go smoothly now and you'll get rid of those nasty bugs real quick and start feeling well!

Jan
 
Poor you! I had sub-acute bacterial endocarditis in 2004 (while my MV still had severe regurgitation). It was not fun.
 
Hi Everybody, Thanks for your replies of support! Nancy, yes I stayed local for this. I went to Northern Dutchess Hospital in Rhinebeck. And I have to say that the care there was actually better than the care I received in Weill Cornell. Not to say that surgery itself would have been better, but the hands on care and responses here were much better.

And Stretch, the local health department has interviewed me extensively about the Salmonella. They now seem to think it might have been eggs that were not thoroughly cooked. But there is no certainty about that. I can't tell you how many people have asked me if I ate the Peter Pan or Walmart Peanutbutter! But, I didn't!

Gina, Good for your cardio and PCP for plunking you in the hospital. Better to be treated and find out that you didn't need to be than to let it get worse if indeed it was BE! Glad it wasn't.

Thanks again, everyone.

Take care and be well.
 
My husband also had Strep Viridans back in 2005 and was treated w/Gent and Rocephin X 1 wk hospital and 8 wks Rocephin at home, and was found to have scarred vegetations on his native valve at the time of AVR in 9/2005 (TEE's X 3 did not reveal these little scars).

We were told by the infection control team at the Mayo what once a pt has had endocarditis, the tissues of the heart are even more likely to aquire a baciterial infecion than the normal bicuspid/mechanical valve pt. Normally it requires a deep venous puncture/exposure lasing longer than 45 minutes to aquire the infection. The American Heart Association has excellent guidelines for post-endocarditis mechanical valves. Wishing you all the best!
 
Hi Sue

Nathan acutally carries an AHA card with him that his cardio from the Mayo gave him. Basically, it states what he (being a mechanical valver post endcarditis) needs to have done prophylactially for different things-namely any invasive procedure. I have never checked their website, although I do remember someone posting this same info in the past year also. I will look at his card when he gets home and let you know, or I can even try and scan it for you.
 
Nan.. so glad you got treatment..and are on the road to recovery!:)

Did the Salmonilla in your bloodstream cause the BE?
I don't know much about BE..
Just glad to hear that you are feeling better!
 
Hi Marky, thanks for your good wishes!

They don't know what caused the BE. It is possible that the Salmonella eroded a part of the intestine and thus allowed the strep viridans to get into my blood stream, but they can't be sure. But I don't believe that the Salmonella can cause BE directly.
 
What a scare for you! But you're feeling better now? Hope you have a quick and complete recovery. Take care.
 
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