Salmonella infective endocarditis in a young diabetic lady with device closure of PDA and VSD: A rare case report

Abstract

The risk of infective endocarditis remains a major concern in patients with congenital heart disease; nevertheless, use of devices and prostheses in corrective surgery may have contributed to an increased incidence. Infective endocarditis due to Salmonella species are infrequently reported, therefore, their clinical presentations, prognosis and optimal treatment guideline are poorly described in literature. Here, we report a case of an 18-year-old diabetic lady with history of device closure of Patent ductus arteriosus and closure of peri-membranous small Ventricular septal defect in the year of 2005 and 2018 respectively who presented to us with high-grade fever for 10 days without any focal symptom. She was initially diagnosed as a case of Enteric fever based on serological tests for Salmonella species, later Transesophageal echocardiography confirmed infective endocarditis. The patient was treated with combination of antibiotics for a total 6-week duration. Although very rare, Salmonella have a predilection for the heart valves, particularly mitral and aortic valves. Diagnosis may be difficult, blood culture is often negative and a Transesophageal echocardiography should be performed without delay particularly in high risk patients. In most cases Salmonella endocarditis can be successfully treated with antimicrobials alone.