Endocarditis, Infective / Disease

Diseases & Conditions

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Endocarditis, Infective

Synonyms of Endocarditis, Infective

Endocarditis, Bacterial
IE

Disorder Subdivisions

Endocarditis, Bacterial Acute
Endocarditis, Bacterial Subacute
Endocarditis, Prosthetic Valvular (PVA)

General Discussion
Infective endocarditis is a bacterial infection of the inner lining of the heart muscle (endocardium). This inner lining also covers the heart valves, and it is these valves which are primarily affected by infective endocarditis. If the infection remains untreated, multiplying bacteria may eventually destroy the valves and result in heart failure. Bacteria may also form small clots (emboli) which move through the blood and block small arteries. These clots may lodge in various parts of the body including the brain and cause serious damage.

There are several forms of infective endocarditis. Two types that have similar symptoms but are caused by different bacteria are acute bacterial endocarditis and subacute bacterial endocarditis. Acute bacterial endocarditis may affect normal heart valves, while subacute bacterial endocarditis more commonly affects heart valves which have been previously damaged by disease. A third type of infective endocarditis, prosthetic valvular endocarditis (PVE), may develop in patients who have previously had artificial (prosthetic) valve replacement or tissue valve replacement.

Organizations related to Endocarditis, Infective

American Heart Association
National Center
Dallas TX 75231-4596
Phone #: 214-373-6300
800 #: 800-242-8721
e-mail: inquire@heart.org
Home page: http://www.americanheart.org
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
1600 Clifton Road NE
Atlanta GA 30333
Phone #: 404-639-3534
800 #: 800-311-3435
e-mail: http://www.cdc.gov/netinfo.htm
Home page: http://www.cdc.gov/
MUMS (Mothers United for Moral Support, Inc) National Parent-to-Parent Network
150 Custer Court
Green Bay WI 54301-1243
Phone #: 920-336-5333
800 #: 877-336-5333
e-mail: mums@netnet.net
Home page: http://www.netnet.net/mums/
NIH/National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute Information Center
P.O. Box 30105
Bethesda MD 20824-0105
Phone #: 301-592-8573
800 #: --
e-mail: nhlbiinfo@rover.nhlbi.nih.gov
Home page: N/A

For a Complete Report

This is an abstract of a report from the National Organization for Rare Disorders, Inc. ? (NORD). A copy of the complete report can be obtained for a small fee by visiting the NORD website. The complete report contains additional information including symptoms, causes, affected population, related disorders, standard and investigational treatments (if available), and references from medical literature. For a full-text version of this topic, see http://www.rarediseases.org/search/rdblist.html