Chlamydia Pneumoniae and heart valve damage

[Rick]

I have acquired aortic valve damage and also in my other valves and shall need surgery sometime. I also have recurring episodes of intermittent fever, extreme tiredness and sometimes sweat. My blood cultures were negative but the infectious disease MD said there were other bateria which may cause heart valve damage which do not appear in a culture.

The only thing that came back positive was Chlamydia Pneumoniae IgG (not the one acquired sexually but the one associated with respiratory illness). The result was over 35 times as high as the maximum supposedly in your bloodstream!! Have read some literature that states a correlation between this and heart disease.

Does anyone know anything about this or has had a similar experience? I understand it is rare but I shall start treatment for this as there is the hypothesis that my valves are chronically inflammed....if this is so, even with replacement, they'll have trouble. Thanks.

Rick

 

[Nancy]

"there is the hypothesis that my valves are chronically inflamed"

Rick I read "hypothesis" and think that this has not been proved yet, so when things have not yet been proved, then worry is not necessary.

Try to only worry when there is a tangible thing to worry about. We could all worry about what might happen. Most of the time it never happens and all that miserable and precious time is wasted.

Right now, allow your doctor to do any worrying for you. He gets paid for it.

The thing to do right now is to knock out the infection with treatment which your doctor is going to do. Then have your blood tested again to determine that this bug is indeed gone.

That is step #1

Step #2 is to discuss this with your cardiologist, preferably now to give him a "head's up", and then again when treatment is complete.

That is what was done for Joe when he developed Klebsiella bacteremia while in the hospital. The ID doctor had a very sobering talk with Joe about the possibility of endocarditis and what could happen.

It all turned out just fine, and he did not develop endocarditis.

He did have a fantastic ID doctor who was very caring and brilliant.

 

[Rick]

Thanks

Thanks

Thanks Nancy for your reply. I am just scared because I read prior threads here and outside articles that state that this specific antibody, to which I rate off the charts, is considered a risk factor for thromboembolism (clots) and problems with valve replacement after the replacement is done. The bacteria itself is very hard to get rid of too...Infectious disease MD said I'd be on at least 6 months of antibiotics but probably longer.

I am trying to worry less...I have been very worried since I was told I'll need valve replacement two and a half weeks ago. Prior to this, I thought I'd make it into my 80s -- I am 38, no history of heart disease in my family, all my grandparents died after age 85 and parents alive and healthy, even my father who is overweight and has smoked for 40 years.

I do think I am getting to a place where I just cannot worry more out of exhaustion. Prayer has helped a good deal too.

 

[Nancy]

The ID doctor did not say there was no treatment for this, just said that it would be a long term treatment. So it is what it is. Just take the medications and do the testing, and soon enough 6 months will be up. ID doctors are specific oriented. They tailor the treatments to the particular bug.

Do not forget to run this by your cardiologist. It is VERY important to keep all the relevant doctors in the loop with anything that impinges on their area of care.

Most doctors will not communicate with each other about a patient and what is going on, so this is up to you, and it is vital to do it. Communicate verbally over the phone, and follow up with a written letter outlining any treatments that you will be having.

Unfortunately, there is no one doctor that gets designated the overseer of a person's medical history and coordinated care.

That is really, in the end, up to the patient.

I know, I did this for Joe for many, many years.

 

[hensylee]

Rick, listen to Nancy. She is our designated 'Mother of the site'. For years we have seen her dear Joe at death's door, but when Nancy took the reins once again, things turned out well for Joe. She has good advice, so do keep your own records, give copies of them to all the drs and keep your own set in order and up to date.

As Nancy says, never give in and never give up. Prayers for you from VR. Blessins............

 

[Bradley White]

There is strong evidence of a link between respiratory chlamydia infection and heart disease. However, scientific understanding of this link remains quite poor. The fact that there is a respiratory form of chlamydia was only discovered relatively recently (20 years or so) and while research is proceeding these types of associations take years and years to demonstrate. The initial finding of the link had been hailed as a major accomplishment by those running the National Institutes of Health and I can assure you that NIH continues to aggressively fund research in this area.

However, due to our poor understanding of the mechanism by which respiratory chlamydia can cause heart disease it is difficult to predict whether they could also cause valve problems. While it is possible, it has not yet been demonstrated. However, I would imagine that being treated for the infection would be a good idea regardless of whether it is the cause of your valve problems.

I would also like to point out that your doctor is correct in saying that it can be very difficult, if not impossible, to culture all of the bacteria that may cause endocarditis.

Best,

Brad