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Antibiotic prophylaxis to prevent endocarditis

3 mins read Dental nursing extra
With the announcement that National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) are to review their guidelines on Prophylaxis for Infective Endocarditis given the recent research showing an increase in the incidence of infective endocarditis in the UK, this months research summary is a review of the current position.

Infective endocarditis is a type of endocarditis. It is an inflammation of the inner tissues of the heart, called the endocardium (such as its valves). It is caused by infectious agents, or pathogens; these are usually bacterial but other organisms can also be responsible (Heiro et al, 2006).

The valves of the heart do not receive their own dedicated blood supply. This effectively means they are indefensible to an immune attack, as white blood cells cannot directly reach them. This lack of blood supply also impacts on treatment, since drugs cannot reach the affected areas either.

Infective endocarditis is a devastating disease with high morbidity and mortality. It may arise following bacteraemia (the presence of bacteria in the blood) in a patient with a predisposing cardiac lesion.

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