Preoperative and postoperative echocardiographic studies of pulmonic valvular endocarditis.

The echocardiographic manifestations of pulmonic valvular endocarditis in a patient with underlying heart disease consisting of a ventricular septal defect and infundibular stenosis are reported. The abnormal shaggy echoes observed on the pulmonic valve were confirmed to be vegetations based on surgical and pathologic findings. This was further proven by the disappearance of the shaggy echoes after surgical excision of the vegetations. We conclude that echocardiograms can detect the presence and disappearance of pulmonic valvular vegetations, which may be of aid in the diagnosis of pulmonic valvular endocarditis.