A surgical case of mitral regurgitation due to active infective endocarditis with idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura

Ann Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2011;17(6):618-23. doi: 10.5761/atcs.cr.10.01647. Epub 2011 Jul 27.

Abstract

A 71-year-old woman with idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP), who had been treated with steroid and cyclosporine, was admitted in an emergency with fever and dyspnea. The diagnosis was mitral regurgitation due ton infective endocarditis. Although she received treatments for infection and cardiac failure, the cardiac failure could not be controlled. After high-dose γ-globulin therapy, an emergency operation was performed during the active phase of infective endocarditis. Rapid platelet transfusion was administered after weaning from extracorporeal circulation. She recovered and was discharged without postoperative bleeding and re-infection.The treatment course of elective cardiac surgery complicated with ITP has been established, but the course of emergency surgery has not been established because of the small number of cases reported. Since few patients have undergone emergency surgery for active infective endocarditis, we had difficulty in deciding the time of surgery and treatment for increasing the number of platelets before surgery, it was considered that the case provided us with useful suggestion for the future treatment for urgent surgery complicated with ITP.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Aged
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / therapeutic use
  • Cardiac Surgical Procedures*
  • Cardiovascular Agents / therapeutic use
  • Endocarditis / complications
  • Endocarditis / microbiology
  • Endocarditis / surgery*
  • Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation
  • Female
  • Heart Failure / etiology
  • Heart Failure / surgery
  • Humans
  • Immunosuppressive Agents / therapeutic use
  • Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus / isolation & purification
  • Mitral Valve Insufficiency / etiology
  • Mitral Valve Insufficiency / surgery*
  • Platelet Transfusion
  • Purpura, Thrombocytopenic, Idiopathic / blood
  • Purpura, Thrombocytopenic, Idiopathic / complications*
  • Purpura, Thrombocytopenic, Idiopathic / drug therapy
  • Staphylococcus epidermidis / isolation & purification
  • Treatment Outcome
  • gamma-Globulins / therapeutic use

Substances

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents
  • Cardiovascular Agents
  • Immunosuppressive Agents
  • gamma-Globulins