Operative treatment for tricuspid valve endocarditis in a premature neonate.

Infective endocarditis is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in hospitalized patients, especially with the increasing use of indwelling catheters in critically ill children. Surgical excision is sometimes essential to relieve valvar dysfunction and reduce burden of infection. Here we present a preterm infant who developed refractory infective endocarditis and right heart failure with tricuspid valve vegetation likely related to an indwelling umbilical venous catheter. Infective endocarditis resolved after resection of the vegetation and tricuspid valve repair, followed by a 6-week course of antibiotics.