Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2022 May 10;15(5):e249723.
doi: 10.1136/bcr-2022-249723.

Neisseria gonorrhoeae infective endocarditis

Marylou Fenech  1 , Thelma Xerri  2 , Paula Grech  2 , Anette Portelli  2
Affiliations
Case Reports

Neisseria gonorrhoeae infective endocarditis

Marylou Fenech et al. BMJ Case Rep. .

Abstract

We present a case of endocarditis secondary to disseminated Neisseria gonorrhoeae infection affecting the native tricuspid valve. After a thorough workup, our patient was treated conservatively with appropriate intravenous antibiotic therapy for 6 weeks. A follow-up echocardiogram showed resolution of the vegetation without any residual valvular involvement. Literature review reveals 99 cases of infective endocarditis which occurred secondary to N. gonorrhoeae infection, of which, only 4 cases (6%) affected the tricuspid valve. Through this case report, we highlight the importance of thorough history taking including a sexual and social history, as well as careful recognition of the clinical signs, which helped us reach this uncommon diagnosis while always maintaining a high clinical suspicion of rare causes of endocarditis.

Keywords: Gonorrhoea; Infectious diseases; Malignant and Benign haematology; Valvar diseases.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests: None declared.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Haemorrhagic bullae over the second toe of the left foot around 0.5 cm in diameter and another smaller similar lesion superior to the medial malleolus of the left foot.
Figure 2
Figure 2
A and B- Small well-circumscribed haemorrhagic bullae over the right and left palm respectively.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Bulla over medial aspect of the left thumb.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Small vegetation (marked with arrows) seen on transthoracic echocardiogram attached to commissure between anterior and posterior leaflets with mild tricuspid regurgitation
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Said M, Tirthani E. Gonococcal infective endocarditis returns. Cureus 2021;301. 10.7759/cureus.17955 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Thompson EC, Brantley D. Gonoccocal endocarditis. J Natl Med Assoc 1996;88. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Shmueli H, Thomas F, Flint N, et al. . Right‐Sided infective endocarditis 2020: challenges and updates in diagnosis and treatment. J Am Heart Assoc 2020;9. 10.1161/JAHA.120.017293 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Rawal H, Joshi U, Parekh J. Eustachian and tricuspid valve endocarditis: a rare consequence of the automatic implantable cardioverter-defibrillator placement. Cureus 2021;81. 10.7759/cureus.20740 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Akinosoglou K, Apostolakis E, Marangos M, et al. . Native valve right sided infective endocarditis. Eur J Intern Med 2013;24:510–9. 10.1016/j.ejim.2013.01.010 - DOI - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms