Pakistan Journal of Medical Sciences

Published by : PROFESSIONAL MEDICAL PUBLICATIONS

ISSN 1681-715X

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ORIGINAL ARTICLE

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Volume 26

July - September 2010

Number  3


 

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Infective endocarditis among hospitalized
intravenous drug user patients in
the south west of Iran

Seyed Mohammad Alavi1, Fatemeh Behdad2

ABSTRACT

Objectives: To determine the frequency of Infective Endocarditis (IE), clinical, echocardiographic and microbiological status at a teaching hospital in Ahvaz, South West Iran.

Methodology: Medical records of 323 Intravenous Drug User (IDU) inpatients from 2001 to 2006 were reviewed, out of which 33 cases that fulfilled the Duke criteria for diagnosis were included in the present study. The patients’ characteristics, clinical findings, microbiological findings, echocardigraphic and comorbidities data were extracted. Data of patients with IE and without IE were compared in SPSS using t-test and chi square test.

Results: Patients with IE were 32 male and one female cases with a mean age of 26.2 years. Non IE patients were 288 male and two female cases with mean age of 37.8 years. Nineteen of our patients were HIV positive. There was statistically significant difference between HIV-positive and HIV-negative patients. Weight loss and fever were the commonest clinical findings. Staphylococcus aureus was the most common organism (24.2%) followed by coagolase negative staphylococcus (15.1%), most of them were methiciline resistant. Tricuspid valve was involved in 33.3% of cases.

Conclusion: Frequency of Infective Endocarditis (IE) among Intravenous Drug User (IDU) is higher than reported in earlier studies. HIV infection increases the risk of IE. Methicilin resistant Staphylococcus aureus is the commonest organism. Tricuspid is the commonest involved cardiac valve.

KEY WORDS: Injection drug users, Infective endocarditis, Ahvaz.

Pak J Med Sci    July - September 2010    Vol. 26 No. 3    659-662

How to cite this article:

Alavi SM, Behdad F. Infective endocarditis among hospitalized intravenous drug user patients in the south west of Iran. Pak J Med Sci 2010;26(3):659-662


1. Dr. Seyed Mohammad Alavi, MD,
Associated Professor of Medical College,
Joundishapour Infectious and
Tropical Diseases Research Center, Iran.
2. Dr. Fatemeh Behdad, MD
Infectious disease ward, Razi Hospital,
Joundishapour University of Medical Sciences,
Ahvaz, Iran,

Correspondence:

Dr. Seyed Mohammad Alavi
No: 52, West 11 Avenue, Kianabad, Ahvaz, Iran
E-mail: alavi.seyedmohammad@yahoo.com

* Received for Publication: November 25, 2009

* Revision Received: April 5, 2010

* Revision Accepted: April 8, 2010



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