Clostridium perfringens bacteremia in prosthetic valve endocarditis. Diagnosis by peripheral blood smear.

A patient with two prosthetic valves had clinical evidence of infectious endocarditis caused by Clostridium perfringens. The diagnosis was made by routine examination of the peripheral blood smear. To our knowledge, no previous reports have been made of clostridial endocarditis in prosthetic valves with the presence of clostridia in the peripheral blood smear.