What is it about?
We describe ten cases of Mycobacterium chimeara infections after cardiovascular surgery. Patients were infected by aerosolization of Mycobacteria that orginiated from Heater cooler water tanks. M. chimaera infections present very late and extracardiac manifestations are often earlier than cardiac manifestations. This novel disease entity is difficult to treat and early redo cardiovascluar surgery is warranted.
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Why is it important?
These infections are recalcitrant to antimycobacterial medications and they were often misdiagnosed as culture-negative endocarditis or prosthetic vascular graft infections. HCUs are widely used in cardiovascular surgery and in order to prevent M chimaera infections HCU should be placed outside the OR.
Perspectives
These patients were very ill and they experienced disease progression due to biofilm formation on the cardiovascular implant. I think that a high rate of patients is underdiagnosed since mycobacterial cultures are not routinely taken in case of prosthetic valve endocarditis or prostetic vascular graft infection.
Dr Barbara Hasse
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Healthcare-associated prosthetic heart valve, aortic vascular graft, and disseminatedMycobacterium chimaerainfections subsequent to open heart surgery, European Heart Journal, July 2015, European Society of Cardiology,
DOI: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehv342.
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