First Case of Infective Endocarditis Caused by : Clinico-Diagnostic Complexities and a Systematic Literature Review.

BACKGROUND

Non-cholera Vibrio species are rare waterborne pathogens that can cause severe infections. Among these, few cases of infections have been reported, especially in the gastrointestinal tract, with no cardiac tissue involvement as a result. Following the PRISMA checklist, we conducted a literature review, and thirteen articles for twenty-two cases overall were included: seven cases of sepsis (in three cases, the echocardiographic results were negative), seven cases of pneumonia, two skin infections, eleven cases of diarrhoea, and a gastroenteritis outbreak. This report documents the expanding clinical spectrum and the role played by in infective endocarditis.

CASE REPORT

A 28-year-old male patient was referred to the cardiac surgery unit for urgent mitral valve replacement due to suspicion of infective endocarditis. Microbiological tests yielded negative results. Following recovery and discharge with antimicrobial therapy for 6 weeks, the patient experienced prosthesis detachment, necessitating re-hospitalisation for an emergency valve replacement. was identified on the prosthesis valve through PCR and successfully treated with ciprofloxacin. However, a spontaneous rupture of the ascending thoracic aorta led to a neurological injury.

DISCUSSION

This case represents the first case of valve infection caused by , characterised by diagnostic and therapeutic challenges and the involvement of the great vessels. Also considered in this case, for a disease with a median age of 58 years (11-83) and a male-to-female ratio of 2.2, were one male neonate and six cases for whom neither sex nor age was indicated. Excluding gastrointestinal cases, the septic forms are associated with high morbidity, although the single case described involved a young and healthy subject. Risk factors for the pathogen or predisposing/pathological conditions for endocarditis did not emerge. The routes and the time of infection could not be determined, deepening the possibility of occupational exposure via the patient's position as a boat worker. Poor sensitivity to third-generation cephalosporins has been reported in the literature: the absence of an antibiogram does not allow for a comparison, although resolution was achieved with ciprofloxacin.

CONCLUSION

The rising global incidence of non-cholera Vibrio infections, driven by environmental changes, calls for urgent research into the factors behind their pathogenicity and infection routes. Diagnostic complexities have emerged together with clinical severity.